National Mortgage Professional Magazine July 2017

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NationalMortgageProfessional.com

MLS LinkTM is a "set it and forrget it" feaature

table of

30

N A T I O N A L

The Most Connected Mortgage Professionals of 2017

J U L Y

36 The Self-Driven Borrower and Faster Closings

By Carlos Sa

2 0 1 7

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M O R T G

V O L U M

A SPECIAL FOCUS ON “SOCIAL MEDIA”

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Eight Insights About Video in Mortgage Marketing

By Ashley Benson...............................................................................60

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Developing a Winning Social Media Strategy By Rick Arvielo.........64 Maximizing Your Social Media Footprint By Tiffany Hade.............. 66

L i

Social Media for Loan Officers–Growing Your Brand and Your Business By Lauren Messenger................................................ 68

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Video as a Relationship Building Tool By Adam P. Smith............... 70

A W

Online Reputation Management: Keep the Conversation Going

By Lisa Buller..................................................................................... 72

58 Mortgage Companies Need to Speak the Millennial Language More Clearly

By Barbara Yolles

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Three Billy Goats Gruff By Eric Weinstein.........................................74

A

Up Your Social Media Game Using Your CRM By Jordan Douglas... 76

M

FEATURES

S

Bringing Clarity to the Name “Non-Qualified” Mortgage

By Tom Hutchens................................................................................. 8

B

The Elite Performer: Halfway Over or Halfway Started?

By Andy W. Harris, CRMS.................................................................... 8

S

Recruiting, Training and Mentoring Corner: Leveraging

(

Testimonials for Recruiting Using Social Media

By Dave Hershman............................................................................. 10

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W

T Y

Building Relationships Via Social Media By Brian Dietderich.......... 16 3 Points With Mat Ishbia.................................................................. 18

C

NAMB Perspective............................................................................ 20

N N H O N N

Reverse Mortgages: From Stigma to Smart Business Strategy.....24 Uniform Mortgage Closing Data Set Approaches Mandatory Compliance Deadline By Andrew Liput.............................................26

82 The Importance of Effective Pre-Game Preparation for Effective Mortgage Compliance

By Amy Bergseth

88 NCRA Launches “Man on the Street” Credit Education Video Series to Help Increase Financial Literacy

By Terry W. Clemans

Compliance Matters: Human Resources Compliance

By Jonathan Foxx............................................................................... 28

V I S I T Company

Web Site

O U R

A D Page

Angel Oak Mortgage Solutions............................ www.angeloakms.com .............................. 69 & Back Cover Athas Capital Group.......................................... www.athascapital.com .................................................... 7 Brokers Compliance Group.................................. www.brokerscompliancegroup.com ................................ 104 Caliber Home Loans.............................................. www.caliberwholesale.com .............................................. 25 CAMP.................................................................. www.thecampsite.org ...................................................... 96 Carrington Mortgage Services, LLC...................... www.carringtonwholesale.com ................................ 9 & 68 Champions School of Real Estate........................ www.championsschool.com/loan .................................... 77 Citadel Servicing Corporation.............................. www.citadelservicing.com .............................................. 63 Comergence Compliance Monitoring LLC.............. www.comergencecompliance.com .................................. 65 Document Systems, Inc./DocMagic...................... www.docmagic.com ...................................................... 11 FAMP................................................................ www.myfamp.org .......................................................... 49 Franklin Flood.................................................. www.premierflood.com ..................................................62 Freddie Mac...................................................... www.freddiemac.com/loanadvisorsuite ............................ 5 Greenbox Loans, Inc........................................... www.greenboxloans.com .............................................. IFC HomeBridge Wholesale...................................... www.homebridgewholesale.com .................................... 29 Lykken On Lending............................................ www.lykkenonlending.com ............................................ 92 MBS Highway.................................................... www.mbshighway.com/MNN .......................................... 93 Mortgage News Network (MNN).......................... www.mortgagenewsnetwork.com ............................ 52 & 53 NAMB+............................................................ www.nambplus.com ...................................................... 23

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of contents

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Tales From the Closing Table By Andrew Liput............................... 38 OrigiNation: Delegate! By Andy W. Harris, CRMS............................ 40 Why the Zillow Salesperson Hung Up on Me By Brian Sacks......... 44

Lykken on Leadership: Eight Ways to Inspire Your Employees in Their Work By David Lykken......................................................... 46 The Mortgage Godfather: You’re All Wrong … and Here’s Why!

By Ralph LoVuolo Sr...........................................................................48 Are Reverse Mortgages Out of Reach for Properties With PACE Loans? By Gino Moro..................................................... 50 The Long & Short: The Business of Short Sales By Pam Marron....54 A Message From FAMP 2017-2018 President Kimber White..........56 My Thanks to You By Jerome Mayne................................................78 States Continue to Support Electronic Notarizations

By Gavin T. Ales................................................................................. 80 Beware of the Workaround: Flexible Appraisal Management Software Increases Productivity With Less Effort By Clint Cornett..... 84 Want to Unify Your Organization’s Production (and Other) Recruiting? By Steve Rennie......................................... 86 Don’t SNOOZE on Your Marketing This Summer!.......................... 90 Three Misconceptions About Millennials That Could Cost You Sales By Bubba Mills.................................................................. 94

COLUMNS New to Market...................................................................................12 News Flash: July 2017...................................................................... 14 Heard on the Street.......................................................................... 42 Outstanding Places to Work.......................................................... 100 NMP Calendar of Events................................................................ 101 NMP Resource Registry................................................................. 102

A D V E R T I S E R S Company

Web Site

Page

NAMB Kickstart.................................................. www.nambkickstart.com ................................................19 NAMB National.................................................. www.namb.org ..............................................................87 NAPMW............................................................ www.napmw.org .......................................................... 47 NAWRB............................................................ www.nawrb.com ............................................................91 New York Community Bancorp. Inc..................... www.nycbmortgage.com ................................................ 41 NMP U.............................................................. www.nmpucoaching.com .................................. 35, 73 & 97 NRMLA.............................................................. www.nrmlaonline.org .................................................... 74 OSI Express........................................................ www.osiexpress.com/mlslink ............................................ 1 Paramount Residential Mortgage Group, Inc....... www.prmg.net .......................... 13, 81 & Inside Back Cover Radian Guaranty................................................ www.radian.biz ............................................................ 67 RealtyShares...................................................... www.realtyshares.com/broker ........................................ 75 REMN................................................................ www.remnwholesale.com .............................................. 15 ResMac, Inc....................................................... www.resmacb2b.com .................................................... 17 Secure Insight.................................................... www.secureinsight.com ..................................................43 TagQuest.......................................................... www.tagquest.com ........................................................ 57 The Bond Exchange............................................ www.thebondexchange.com .......................................... 76 The Mortgage Collaborative................................ www.mortgagecollaborative.com .................................... 71 UAMP................................................................ www.uampexpo.eventbrite.com ......................................92

JULY 2017 Volume 9 • Number 7

FROM THE

publisher’s desk

Finding borrowers where they are I often wonder how many of the readers in the massive audience we’ve built up over the years came to 1220 Wantagh Avenue • Wantagh, NY 11793-2202 us via social media. Certainly, many of our most experienced readers were originating or servicing Phone: (516) 409-5555 • Fax: (516) 409-4600 mortgage loans long before Facebook made the scene or tweets became a thing people did. But as I’ve Web site: NationalMortgageProfessional.com watched our audience grow, I feel certain that many have learned about us online and then made their STAFF Eric C. Peck Joel M. Berman way to our magazine and Web site. That is, after all, how people find things these days.

Editor-in-Chief Publisher - CEO (516) 409-5555, ext. 312 (516) 409-5555, ext. 310 People were going online for mortgage loan information long before social media rose to prominence, ericp@mortgagenewsnetwork.com joel@mortgagenewsnetwork.com but today, you can bet a new borrower will be checking with some online network of friends or Joey Arendt Beverly Bolnick connections before reaching out to a lender for a new loan. It’s just the way things are done. In fact, our Art Director VP-Sales & Marketing (516) 409-5555, ext. 323 (516) 409-5555, ext. 316 newest generation of home loan borrowers doesn’t know any other way. It’s funny just how fast things joeya@mortgagenewsnetwork.com beverlyb@mortgagenewsnetwork.com change.

Scott Koondel Phil Hall VP of Operations Managing Editor That’s why we publish this special issue each year, our social media issue, to help make sure that all (516) 409-5555, ext. 324 (516) 409-5555, ext. 312 of our readers are up to date on the latest trends in social media marketing. Failing to master this new scottk@mortgagenewsnetwork.com philh@mortgagenewsnetwork.com marketing channel will absolutely cost you business in the future. But then, you’re a National Mortgage Richard Zyta Francine Miller Social Media Ambassador Advertising Coordinator Professional Magazine reader, which means you’re ready to take action. All you need is the information (516) 409-5555 (516) 409-5555, ext. 301 richardz@mortgagenewsnetwork.com francinem@mortgagenewsnetwork.com and this issue is packed with it.

Rick Grant Dylan Pollock Start with Barbara Yolles’ excellent article entitled, “Mortgage Companies Need to Speak the Special Reports Editor Administrative Assistant Millennial Language More Clearly” on page 58. An executive with UWM, Barbara understands the (570) 497-1026 (direct) (516) 409-5555, ext. 314 (516) 409-555, ext. 311 dylanp@mortgagenewsnetwork.com Millennial mindset. Her insight into what it takes to connect with this vitally important target market is rickg@mortgagenewsnetwork.com must-read information.

ADVERTISING To receive any information regarding advertising rates, deadlines and requirements, please contact As she puts it, “Despite the fact that more housing-related content is directed at Millennials than VP-Sales & Marketing Beverly Bolnick at (516) 409-5555, ext. 316 or e-mail beverlyb@mortgageseemingly ever before, a lot of big players in the mortgage world seem to be in an uphill quest to appeal newsnetwork.com. to the Millennial crowd because they aren’t speaking the same language.”

ARTICLE SUBMISSIONS/PRESS RELEASES To submit any material, including articles and press releases, please contact Editor-in-Chief Eric C. Peck Then, jump over to our 2017 list of “The Most Connected Mortgage Professionals.” This highly at (516) 409-5555, ext. 312 or e-mail ericp@mortgagenewsnetwork.com. The deadline for submissions anticipated list of mortgage pros is a who’s who of connected industry experts. These people know how is the first of the month prior to the target issue. to leverage today’s most effective social media websites. Many of them have been profiled in videos on SUBSCRIPTIONS To receive subscription information, please call (516) 409-5555, ext. 301; e-mail orders@mortgageMortgage News Network. Find out who made this year’s list beginning on page 30. newsnetwork.com or visit www.nationalmortgageprofessional.com. Any subscription changes may be made to the attention of “Circulation” via fax to (516) 409-4600.

After that, you’ll be ready to dig into this issue’s special focus on social media so you can make the Statements, articles and opinions in National Mortgage Professional Magazine are the responsibility of the Most Connected list yourself in 2018. This is one of the largest issues of the year for us because we’re authors alone and do not imply the opinion or endorsement of Mortgage News Network Inc., or the offibringing you information that covers the entire spectrum of social media marketing. And that starts with cers or members of National Association of Mortgage Brokers and its State Affiliates (NAMB), National Association of Professional Mortgage Women (NAPMW), National Consumer Reporting Association (NCRA) your strategy. and/or other state mortgage trade associations.

Participation in NAMB, NAPMW, NCRA, and/or other state mortgage trade associations events, activJust like every other kind of marketing outreach you engage in, social media requires you to choose a ities and/or publications is available on a non-discriminatory basis and does not reflect the endorsement strategy that will set you apart from your competitors. Just remember, when it comes to promoting of the product and/or services by Mortgage News Network Inc., NAMB, NAPMW, NCRA, and other state mortgage trade associations. home finance online, you’re competing with both our own industry and the new fintech competitors that National Mortgage Professional Magazine, NAMB, NAPMW, NCRA, and/or other state mortgage hope to get between mortgage lenders and the borrowers they serve. trade associations do not make any misrepresentations or warranties concerning the regulatory and/or compliance aspects of advertisers, products or services and/or the editorial content contained in Mortgage Rick Arvielo, Chief Executive Officer of New American Funding, takes a closer look at what your News Network Inc. publications. National Mortgage Professional Magazine and Mortgage News Network Inc. reserve the right to edit, reject and/or postpone the publication of any articles, information or data. strategy must include if you hope to win more business. See his article, “Developing a Winning Social Media Strategy” on page 64.

Most of our readers have already embraced social media marketing to some degree and now it’s all about growing their social media presence and attracting more leads. We have a number of great articles in store for the marketer who is ready to grow online.

First, check out “Maximizing Your Social Media Footprint,” by Tiffany Hade, Public Relations and Social Media Specialist for Mountain West Financial Inc. on page 66. She has some great ideas of fully capitalizing on what you may already be doing.

And when it comes to doing more of what you’re already doing, don’t forget to apply that to your technology, too. As Jordan Douglas, Marketing Manager for Whiteboard Mortgage Software, points out on page 76, you can “Up Your Social Media Game Using Your CRM.” And don’t miss “Social Media for Loan Officers–Growing Your Brand and Your Business,” by Lauren Messenger, Social Media and Talent Acquisition Specialist for Inlanta Mortgage Inc. on page 68. Inlanta has been doing a great job of growing its business, and this article will give you some insight on one way they are accomplishing that.

When it comes to maximizing your impact on social media, nothing currently comes close to video in its power to attract attention and start online conversations. It’s one of the reasons we launched Mortgage News Network. Companies that learn to use video well will see their social media marketing results multiplied. To help you with that, we provide some great articles this month.

“Eight Insights About Video in Mortgage Marketing,” by Ashley Benson, Senior Marketing Specialist for Angel Oak Mortgage Solutions on page 60, will give you all the ammunition you need to convince company management that video is a required marketing tool. Then check out “Video as a Relationship Building Tool,” by Adam P. Smith, President of The Colorado Real Estate Finance Group Inc., for tips on how to make the best use of it beginning on page 70.

Finally, we must never forget that social media marketing is not a one-way conversation like some other marketing media. We don’t control both sides of the dialog when it comes to social media and so we must always be on guard if we hope to minimize reputational risk. Lisa Buller, Digital Marketing Specialist for Waterstone Mortgage discusses this in her excellent article on page 72, “Online Reputation Management: Keep the Conversation Going.”

As always, you’ll find all of the industry coverage you’ve come to expect from National Mortgage Professional, from new product announcements to executive movers to must-read compliance information and industry association news and more. And don’t worry, for our readers that like content that makes you think, we have Eric Weinstein’s article, “Three Billy Goats Gruff,” on page 74!

Thank you for being one of our valued readers. May the information we’ve compiled for you this month lead to ever greater success for you and your companies.

Sincerely, Joel M. Berman, Publisher-CEO NMP Media Corp.

Joel@MortgageNewsNetwork.com

National Mortgage Professional Magazine is published monthly by Mortgage News Network Inc. • Copyright © 2017 Mortgage News Network Inc.

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A

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enter

Cutting costs and sa avving time should be automa attic.

Learn more at www.FreddieMac.com m/LoanAdvisorSuite

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n National Mortgage Professional Magazine n JULY 2017

More automation means a more efficie ent, less costly process for you and your borrowers. Automated collateral evaluations. e Automated assessments for borrowers without credit scores. Au utomated income and asset validation.

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NationalMortgageProfessional.com

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5

NAMB—The Association of Mortgage Professionals 2701 West 15th Street, Suite 536 l Plano, Texas 75075 l Phone: (972) 758-1151 l Fax: (530) 484-2906 l Web site: NAMB.org

NAMB 2016-2017 BOARD OF DIRECTORS E X E C U T I V E

Fred Kreger, CMC President American Pacific Mortgage 3000 Lava Ridge Court, Suite 200 Roseville, CA 95661 (916) 960-5824 Fred.Kreger@APMortgage.com

John G. Stevens, CRMS President-Elect RPM Mortgage Inc. 6045 West 10050 North Highland, UT 84003 (801) 427-7111 JohnGStevens@gmail.com

Valerie Saunders, CRMS Vice President RE Financial Services Inc. 25 Causeway Boulevard #101 Clearwater Beach, FL 33767 (727) 853-1000 Valerie@REFinServ.com

Olga Kucerak, CRMS Secretary Crown Lending Inc. 10 Broadway, Suite 110 San Antonio, TX 78205 (210) 828-3384 CrownLending@gmail.com

B O A R D

Andy W. Harris, CRMS Treasurer Vantage Mortgage Group Inc. 16325 SW Boones Ferry Road, Suite 100 Lake Oswego, OR 97035 (503) 496-0431, ext. 302 AHarris@VantageMortgageGroup.com

Harry H. Dinham, CMC NAMB COO Dinham Consulting 2701 West 15th Street, Suite 536 Plano, TX 75075 (972) 758-1151 Consulting@DinhamCompanies.com

Rocke Andrews, CMC, CRMS Immediate Past President Fairway Independent Mortgage Inc. 5151 East Broadway, #1700 Tucson, AZ 85711 (520) 886-7283 RAndrews@LendingArizona.net

D I R E C T O R S

Rick Bettencourt, CRMS Mortgage Network Inc. 52 Maple Street Danvers, MA 01923 (978) 304-0818 RBettencourt@MortgageNetwork.com

Chris Bettis Precision Capital 4710 Village Plaza Loop, Suite 140 Eugene, OR 97441 (541) 284-8098 Chris@PrecisionCapital.net

Linda McCoy, CRMS Mortgage Team 1 6336 Piccadilly Square Drive Mobile, AL 36609 (251) 650-0805 Linda@MortgageTeam1.com

Michele Velez, CMC Supreme Lending 1300 San Mateo, CA 94402 (650) 409-5347 Michelle.Velez@SupremeLending.com

Nathan Pierce, CRMS Advanced Funding Home Mortgage Loans 6589 South 1300 East, Suite 200 Salt Lake City, UT 84121 (801) 272-0600 NPierce@AdvFund.com

Robert Sweeney, CRMS Teachers Credit Union 600 East Carmel Drive, Suite 116 Carmel, IN 46032 (317) 625-3287 RSweeney@tcunet.com

Kimber White RE Financial Services Inc. 1620 West Oakland Park Boulevard #201 Oakland Park, FL 33311 (954) 306-3553 Kimber.LMT@gmail.com

National Association of Professional Mortgage Women 345 North Main Street, Suite 313 l West Hartford, CT 06117 l Phone: (800) 827-3034 l E-mail: NAPMW1@NAPMW.org l Web site: NAPMW.org

2017-2018 NAPMW NATIONAL BOARD OF DIRECTORS 6

JULY 2017 n National Mortgage Professional Magazine n

NationalMortgageProfessional.com

Cathy Kantrowitz National President (845) 463-3011 President@NAPMW.org

Laurel Knight President-Elect (425) 426-2028 PresElect@NAPMW.org

Susan Kerr Vice President (703) 871-1310 NVP1@NAPMW.org

Glenda Mooney Secretary (314) 703-8714 NatSecretary@NAPMW.org

Judy Alderson Treasurer (918) 250-9080, ext. 300 NatTreasurer@NAPMW.org

Lynne Sparks Parliamentarian (678) 872-9000, ext. 10611 LSparks@SKWRLaw.com

Vincent Valvo Executive Director (860) 922-3441 NAPMW1@NAPMW.org

National Consumer Reporting Association 701 East Irving Park Road, Suite 306 l Roselle, IL 60172 l Phone: (630) 539-1525 l Fax: (630) 539-1526 l Web site: NCRAINC.org

2016-2017 BOARD OF DIRECTORS

Julie Wink President (901) 259-5105 Julie@DataFacts.com

Paul Wohkittel Vice President (410) 644-5020 PWohkittel@CISInfo.net

Gary Glucroft Director (800) 877-3908, ext. 100 GaryG@TheScreeningPros.com

William Bower Ex-Officio (800) 288-4757 WBower@Continfo.com

Scott Ledbetter Director (214) 833-3315 SLedbetter@LCGSolutions.net

Mike Thomas Treasurer (615) 386-2285, ext. 285 MThomas@CICCredit.com

Brian McKinney Director (706) 373-2200 McKinney@MCBUSA.com

Mary Campbell Director (701) 239-9977 Mary@AdvantageCreditBureau.com

Delia Zuniga Director (623) 889-8999 Delia@AdvantagePlusCredit.com

Janet Curtis Director (210) 224-6121 JCurtis@SARMA.com

Terry Clemans Executive Director (630) 539-1525 TClemans@NCRAInc.org

Maureen Devine Director (413) 736-4511 MDevine@StrategicInfo.com

Jan Gerber Office Manager/Member Services (630) 539-1525 JGerber@ NCRAInc.org

Big Things on the Horizon for ARMCP This year will bring some great new opportunities to the Association of Residential Mortgage Compliance Professionals™ (ARMCP™), currently consisting of nearly 1,600 members. ARMCP™ will soon be launching its own Web site to fulfill the needs of residential mortgage compliance professionals.

ARMCP™ is the first and only independent, national organization in the U.S. devoted exclusively to residential mortgage compliance professionals. Our independence means we are not affiliated with any profit oriented corporation or enterprise. ARMCP™ membership consists solely of those members who have joined it on their own and were not solicited to join it via solicitations from third-party lists or subscriptions. Independence is the key to the value of our advocacy!

There are currently two slots remaining for the Steering Committee. The Steering Committee will be drafting new by-laws, determining a nominating process, conference planning, and many other areas of interest relating to ARMCP™’s mission. If you are interested in joining the Steering Committee, email Info@ARMCP.org.

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n National Mortgage Professional Magazine n JULY 2017

Bringing Clarity to the Name “Non-Qualified” Mortgage

By Tom Hutchens

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NationalMortgageProfessional.com

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t is understandable that mortgage professionals are unsure about Non-Qualified (Non-QM) mortgages. The fact is that borrowers needing these loans are just as fit to repay them–quite often more so–than people who can obtain agency loans. The problem is that these loan products have been given the wrong name. A quick history can clear the confusion.

In the wake of the Great Recession, when the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFBB) issued its final “Ability-toRepay and Qualified Mortgage (QM) Rule,” they redefined the categories under which mortgage loans are underwritten by major institutions. This rule, which went into effect Jan. 10, 2014, institutionalized “Qualified” and “Non-QM” loans as distinct product lines. Even though the market collapse of 2008 and the 2010 Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act had already eliminated issuance of high-risk loans, mortgage professionals still—often intuitively—compare non-QM loans to sub-prime loans.

In truth, the 2014 rule gave birth to an important and growing product known as Non-QM. However, these are nothing like the high-risk loans of the pre-recession market.

Today, all borrowers must conform to strict underwriting requirements. Gone forever are the days when an individual with questionable credit history, no cash and non-verified income could buy or refinance homes.

The pool of potential non-QM borrowers in this country numbers in the millions. It includes self-employed individuals, small business owners and those who have had an unfortunate credit event. Even with sufficient downpayments, by the CFPB rule, these people cannot “qualify” for a loan issued by agency lenders due to reasons such as income verification, ratios or insufficient housing event seasoning.

Consider Michelle and Justin. In 2006, they easily qualified for a conventional 30-year fixed loan. Then Justin lost his job and could not find another. They struggled to make ends meet for several years, until Justin’s new S-Corporation got off the ground. Since 2013, he has earned more than $200,000 a year. Yet, because he does not pay himself a regular salary, Justin and Michelle can only buy a new house for their growing family by securing a non-QM loan for which they qualify by using bank statements.

Today, more than 15 million American families have similar income and credit histories. Non-QM loans enable them to buy new homes. Brokers who get a grip on these products will be doing a great service to themselves and thousands of excellent potential customers. To learn more, an Angel Oak Mortgage expert near you has details, visit AngelOakMS.com/Map.

Tom Hutchens is senior vice president of sales and marketing at Angel Oak Mortgage Solutions, an Atlanta-based wholesale/correspondent lender licensed in more than 35 states and operating in the non-QM space for over three years. Tom has been in the real estate lending business for nearly 20 years. He may be reached by phone at (855) 539-4910 or e-mail Info@AngelOakMS.com.

SPONSORED EDITORIAL

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Halfway Over or Halfway Started?

BY ANDY W. HARRIS, CRMS

t’s hard to believe we’re already halfway through 2017 and just ended the second quarter of the year. Summer is in full swing, and pretty soon, the kids will be back to school and the holidays will be here before we know it. It’s a fast circle that turns every year with each season, and sometimes it feels like it’s hard to keep up with. If we feel like we’re always chasing something, it can be hard to remain focused and attentive. With everything, it’s important to always have a plan developed around perspective and purpose.

The clock moves and you cannot control time, but you can control what you do with the time you have. The first step is by having the right work-life balance to allow for everything to be put into perspective which uncovers your purpose. What are the reasons you set goals and what are these goals meant to accomplish? Do you feel like you are chasing other things that get in the way of your goals through the fast-pace of life, or do you feel accomplishment every step of the way? Imagine if you felt good at the end of each work day and headed home with a level of contentment through your productivity and having a positive outlook.

I believe having a positive mindset changes everything. What seems like a big deal, really isn’t a big deal. You just need to plan and prioritize things accordingly and know that they will always be there tomorrow. So as they say, is the glass half empty or half full? Is your year halfway over or are you just getting started? Are you just glad you made it through the last six months, and may or may not have hit your goals or are you excited about how much you’ve already accomplished? Are you excited for how much you still plan to accomplish between now and the end of December?

While the calendar is just dates on paper, our lives and goals usually plan around these numbers and seasons. When setting goals or reflecting on the year, remember your reflection is all perception.

Your mindset means everything so remain positive. Learn from mistakes, celebrate successes, but always have perspective and know that there is plenty of time to get things done. Everything will work out if you remain focused, happy, and healthy. Take a break and remain positive. Your year has only halfway begun.

I

Andy W. Harris, CRMS is president and owner of Lake Oswego, Ore.-based Vantage Mortgage Group Inc. and past president of the Oregon Association of Mortgage Professionals. He may be reached by phone at (877) 4960431, e-mail AHarris@VantageMortgageGroup.com or visit VantageMortgageGroup.com.

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Recruiting, Training and Mentoring Corner

Leveraging Testimonials for Recruiting Using Social Media

BY DAVE HERSHMAN

ertainly, the world of recruiting has changed in many ways during the past decade or two. Years ago, most recruiting was done through “word-of-mouth.” Today, the information you can find regarding prospects seems to be unlimited. There are Web sites, social media, lists of top producers and more. And all of this is in addition to the “wordof-mouth” networks that we solely relied upon years ago.

Unfortunately, if you are recruiting, you are not the only potential employer that has access to all of this information.

As a matter of fact, good producers are literally inundated with phones call from recruiters— most of which they will not even respond to. After all, if they are a top producer, they are spending their time producing. Only if a call comes in with good timing might they listen.

What might constitute good timing? Perhaps their company is not closing loans on time and things are getting worse instead of better. Unfortunately, you can’t be “in their faces” every day and therefore the chances of your timing being on target is less than ideal. This is why the development of relationships is still an integral part of the recruiting process so that they think of you when the timing is right.

If you have bountiful information regarding prospects, they also have bountiful information regarding your

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company–both online and through their network. With so much information online—how do you distinguish your company with the information overload out there?

There are many ways to do this. For example, providing extra value in terms of education, marketing tips and news. You need to establish yourself as a leader within the industry. One area we would like to address today is testimonials. Every potential employer is going to claim that they give great service and have great pricing, programs and support. And the prospect knows that at least half of their suitors are painting a rosy picture that does not really exist.

That is why testimonials are so important. They provide what we call “social proof.” Social proof in this context provides independent evidence of your performance. We have previously talked about the use of testimonials within the marketing process. However, testimonials are just as important for creating reputation and credibility, which spearheads influencing behavior within the recruiting process.

Of course, the types of testimonials you would gather to establish corporate credibility are different within the recruiting process. Both marketing and recruiting might use testimonials from customers and referral sources such as real estate agents and builders. However, for

recruiting, quotes from present loan officers and vendors are even more important. If a settlement company can say that they close for 20 lenders and yours are the smoothest closings, this speaks volumes.

Where might you use these testimonials? You would place these on your Web site; for example, on a career page. They would also be placed upon social media sites. LinkedIn would be especially important because it is likely prospects will peruse your LinkedIn personal and company page. If you have a company Facebook Page, this is also an option.

Going further, testimonials can be used in advertising. Did you know that you can place ads with testimonials on social media and other sites that your recruiting prospects are visiting? Imagine if your prospect gets a call from you and you have a brief conversation in which you commit to call to set up an

appointment next month—when they are not so busy. In the meantime, as they are surfing the Web, positive quotes about your company just start popping up.

Not familiar with this type of marketing technology? You can go to this site to request a demo a system which will collect recruiting testimonials, set up such ads and deploy them automatically. Go to: SmartZip.com/r150-DHershman.

When you become familiar with a technology such as this, you start to see that you can indeed be “in their faces” at all times, creating a positive impression of your company as you also increase the chances that your timing will be ontarget.

Now, none of this will replace the goal of developing relationships. However, you can’t develop a relationship if you can’t get your feet in the door.

Dave Hershman is a top author in this industry with seven books published, as well as the founder of the OriginationPro Marketing System and the OriginationPro’s online comprehensive mortgage school. Dave is also director of Branch Support for McLean Mortgage. He may be reached by e-mail at Dave@HershmanGroup.com or visit OriginationPro.com.

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newtomarket CBCInnovis and Factual Data to Both Offer LexisNexis RiskView Liens and Judgments Report

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CBCInnovis and Factual Data have both announced their alignment with data and analytics company LexisNexis Risk Solutions to offer the LexisNexis RiskView Liens & Judgments Report. This new FCRA product enables lenders to fill the gap left behind when the National Credit Reporting Agencies cease offering access to most liens and judgment data in two months.

“CBCInnovis recognized our customers’ need to address the imminent information gap that will be created in the marketplace with this change,” said Ken Viviano, Senior Vice President of CBCInnovis.

“Subsequently, we proactively aligned with industry leader LexisNexis in seeking a solution to fill that void. As a result, CBCInnovis is pleased to deliver our customers a FCRA product that will be fully integrated into their current credit report format, to more completely assess consumer credit worthiness.”

LexisNexis Risk Solutions has observed that borrowers who have a judgment or tax lien are five-and-a-half times more likely to end up in pre-foreclosure or foreclosure, as compared to borrowers who don’t have judgments and tax liens, making this information vital for lenders.

According to Lexis Risk Solutions, this new RiskView Liens & Judgments Report delivers technology advancements that bolster the reliability of lien and civil judgment content, with greater

than 99 percent reliability and full compliance with Fair Credit Reporting Act regulations.

“Aligning with industry leader LexisNexis was critical in our efforts to addressing this impending information gap for our customers,” said Jay Giesen, Senior Vice President of Factual Data. “Factual Data is proud to provide to our customers a FCRA product that will be fully integrated into their current credit report format, helping them to continue to thoroughly assess consumer credit worthiness.”

Tim Coyle, Senior Director of Real Estate and Mortgage at LexisNexis Risk Solutions, said, “The report will assist a lender’s ability to assess an applicant’s ability to pay, minimize related closing delays and comply with investor requirements. Both Factual Data and CBCInnovis’ extensive integrations with customers and leading industry platforms will make it simple for customers to adapt and protect themselves from the upcoming credit report content change.”

Fannie Mae’s D1C initiative. The company also updated its rulebased technology to assist auditing these loans according to the D1C initiative.

ACES’ direct import of D1C data enables users to preserve the integrity of their QC processes, while also aligning with D1C parameters.

“Lenders can gain added protection under Fannie Mae’s Day 1 Certainty initiative, but they have to follow certain protocols,” said Phil McCall, Chief Operating Officer of ARMCO. “We updated ACES so our clients can automate their auditing process to account for the different checkpoints associated with D1C. Our clients know that ARMCO’s mission is protecting their businesses. They know they can rely on us to stay on top of all guidelines, initiatives, regulations and trends, and they know we will continue providing the tools that help them grow and protect their businesses, not just for now, but also for the long haul.”

ARMCO Updates ACES Technology With Day 1 Certainty Functionality

CoesterVMS Integrates With LendingQB

ACES Risk Management (ARMCO) has announced that it has updated its flagship ACES Audit Technology with new functionality that aligns with Fannie Mae’s Day 1 Certainty (D1C) initiative. With this update, ACES now includes additional fields for assessing asset, income, employment and collateral data according to

CoesterVMS.com has integrated its Cloud Control appraisal management service into LendingQB, giving LendingQB users a place to manage appraisal orders with CoesterVMS directly from the LOS interface. In addition to the standard status update and document delivery features, the integration also incorporates LendingQB’s new Bi-Directional

Messaging tool, allowing for seamless, real-time communication between Coester staff and LendingQB users.

“Lenders need the freedom to select the tools that help them close more loans quickly and efficiently,” said Brian Coester, Chief Executive Officer of CoesterVMS.com. “LendingQB provides a commitment to seamless integration that makes it easy to deliver our cuttingedge appraisal management services to lenders within the LOS workflow.”

Tim Nguyen, President of LendingQB, said, “Lenders today are under pressure to deliver loans to the closing table on an ever-shortening timeline. The integration with CVMS provides just one more option for lenders to select the best path to finalizing appraisals and closing the loan.”

Lender Price Announces Integration With Ernst Publishing

Lender Price has announced an integration with Ernst Publishing, a provider of mortgage fee data for the real estate and home finance industry.

“We are excited about this integration with Ernst, a proven leader in providing mortgage fee data,” said Lender Price Founder and Chief Executive Officer Dawar Alimi. “This partnership further strengthens our best in class PPE as we continue to integrate with the industry’s leading companies.”

The integration allows the Lender Price pricing engine to return Ernst closing cost quotes instantly, ensuring that accurate settlement fee data is transmitted for each loan quote. Ernst fee data is also accessible from

within the Lender Price application program interface, providing flexibility for lenders to choose the applicable fees by client.

“At Ernst, it has long been our mission to offer every lender their fees, their way, whether that be through a direct XML interface, a mobile app or their loan origination technology,” said Gregory E. Teal, President and Chief Executive Officer of Ernst Publishing. “We congratulate Lender Price on its growth in the market and we’re proud to offer every lender using that technology access to guaranteed accurate closing costs through this new integration.”

Although there are still some traditionally wet-signed documents, this allows the majority of the closing package to be executed more efficiently and securely.

“Each time a national provider like Equity National Title adopts an eClosing process, the digital transformation of the mortgage becomes much more widespread—even much more mainstream,” said Mark McElroy, President and Chief Executive Officer of Pavaso. “With a large title network for digital mortgages emerging, it’s really only a matter

of time until eClosings are a staple for businesses.” eCU Mortgage Introduces Third-Party Service for Credit Unions eCU Mortgage has introduced a third-party mortgage origination service that streamlines the mortgage process and delivers more revenue to credit unions when loans are sold on the secondary market.

The mortgage origination solution supplements a credit union’s existing loan efforts through a RESPA-compliant structure in which the credit union initiates the loan while eCU Mortgage handles all the closing and funding. It is designed to maximize a credit union’s control over its member’s loan experience and assure compliance throughout the entire process. eCU Mortgage processes and underwrites the mortgage loans, continued on page 18

Equity National Title Now Conducting eClosings Via Pavaso

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Equity National Title is now able to deliver eClosings with Digital Close through Pavaso, a provider of digital closing solutions for the mortgage industry. Equity National Title can now deliver hybrid eClosings in which select documents, such as the Deed and Note, are printed and “wetsigned,” but much of the closing package is executed electronically.

“An awesome closing experience for our customers and their borrowers is our primary focus and the digital closing experience is one that more and more of our lending partners are demanding,” said Jim O’Donnell, President of Equity National Title. “Pavaso’s technology is being used by a number of our lender clients, and we’ve found that they deliver fantastic support as well as flexibility through the hybrid option when we need to close on any combination of paper and digital.”

Pavaso’s Digital Close accommodates paper, hybrid or fully digital closings. It also enables efficient online communication and collaboration between the real estate agent, lender, title/settlement agent and borrower during the entire closing process. The digital closing platform provides builtin eSign and eNotarization capabilities, allowing borrowers to sign and notaries to verify and stamp documents digitally.

WSFLASH y JULY 2017 y NMP NEWSFLASH y JULY 2017 y NMP NEWSFLASH y JULY 2017 y NMP NEW

NAMB Membership Survey Finds Low Home Inventory Chief Obstacle for Homebuyers

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NAMB—The National Association of Mortgage Professionals has announced the results of its monthly member survey. The primary findings include the following: l Low home inventory was cited by 58 percent of respondents nationwide as the number one obstacle for clients looking to buy a home, followed by downpayment (18.5 percent) and credit (seven percent). l According to 57.6 percent of respondents nationwide, the average length of time to receive an appraisal is 10 days or fewer, for 36.8 percent of respondents, turn times average between 10 and 21 days.

Roughly 53 percent of responses the survey came from NAMB members in California, Florida and Texas.

In California, 73 percent of respondents cited low home inventory as the number one obstacle for clients looking to buy a home, followed by downpayment (nine percent) and credit score (3.3 percent).

Appraisal turn times are fairly quick in the Golden State, averaging fewer than 10 days for 79.8 percent of respondents. Of the three states, California was the only

one in which appraisal turn times were reported to exceed 21 days, although only 2.2 percent of responses indicated average times between 22 and 30 days.

In Florida, the reported top obstacles to homebuying were more balanced: Low inventory was cited most often at 36.4 percent, followed downpayment (30.3 percent) and credit score (21.2 percent). The majority of respondents (60.6 percent) reported average appraisal turn times of fewer than 10 days, and the remainder (39.4 percent) stated timeframes between 10 and 21 days.

Texas NAMB members also cited low inventory as the number one obstacle to homebuying (58 percent), followed by downpayment (16.1 percent) and credit score (6.5 percent). The average length of time to get an appraisal back in Texas takes fewer than 10 days for 54.8 percent of respondents, and between 10 and 21 days for the remaining 45.1 percent.

NAMB surveys its members periodically to determine mortgage activity and trends.

For the June 2017 survey, over 65 percent of respondents nationwide reported being employed by mortgage brokerage firms. Slightly more than 30 percent stated that they are licensed in multiple states.

CFPB Finalizes TRID Updates

It’s official: The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has finalized updates to the TILARESPA Integrated Disclosure rule (TRID), also known as the “Know Before You Owe” rule, with amendments that the agency said were “intended to formalize guidance in the rule, and provide greater clarity and certainty.”

Although TRID took effect on Oct. 3, 2015, the updates addressed issues including tolerances for the total of payments, housing assistance lending, privacy and information sharing, and update coverage to include cooperative units. The CFPB is also releasing a limited follow-up proposal to address an additional implementation issue on how a creditor may provide separate disclosure forms to the consumer and the seller.

“A mortgage is one of the largest financial decisions a consumer will ever make, and CFPB’s rules help ensure consumers have the easyto-understand information they need before making a decision that will significantly impact their financial lives,” said CFPB Director Richard Cordray. “Our updates will clarify parts of our mortgage

disclosure rule to make for a smoother implementation process for lenders and consumers.”

Last year, a survey of 1,000 repeat homeowners by ClosingCorp found that 64 percent of respondents said it was easier getting a mortgage prior to the implementation of TRID, while 57 percent said it took more time under TRID than it did previously.

A study by STRATMOR Group found that TRID changes hiked the price of loan originations by an average of $209 per loan, with lenders estimating that only about 17 percent of those costs being recovered through additional charges.

“The MBA appreciates the CFPB’s efforts in amending the Know Before You Owe rule to address several significant questions that have been raised for some time by our industry,” said David H. Stevens, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA). “This is an extensive rule and we intend to review it closely with our members. We note that CFPB has proposed a new rule to deal with issues concerning needed revisions to the Closing Disclosure during the mortgage process that we will carefully review and comment on as well.”

“Chalk this one up to an opportunity missed. While it made some important clarifications, the CPFB failed to address the item that confuses buyers and sellers the most at closing, the requirement that they receive incorrect information about the cost of title insurance at the closing table,” said Michelle Korsmo, Chief Executive Officer of

the American Land Title Association (ALTA). “Our consumer research shows that 40 percent feel confused by the CFPB’s requirement to provide inaccurate pricing on title insurance. While the CFPB’s disclosures have helped homebuyers better understand their mortgage costs, consumers would value their disclosures more if the CFPB showed the accurate costs of title insurance instead of the incremental costs. The CFPB has an obligation to make this simple change. We strongly urge the Bureau to start the process of writing a new regulation to fix to title fee disclosure so consumers can receive accurate information about title insurance at closing.”

will end 2017 with a whimper instead of a bang.

In a new analysis, the trade group predicted that this sector will end the year at $478 billion, a three percent below last year’s volumes. The MBA added that mortgage banker originations of multifamily mortgages only will reach $206 billion by New Year’s Eve, with total multifamily lending at $245 billion.

However, commercial/multifamily mortgage debt outstanding should end the year two percent higher than at the end of 2016.

“Commercial and multifamily

market activity has downshifted at the start of 2017,” said MBA Vice President of Commercial Real Estate Research Jamie Woodwell. “Markets continue to move forward, but the rapid increases in property values, transaction volumes and other fundamentals that characterized the postrecession period have given way to more regular changes tied to the economy as well as changes in supply and demand. For many parts of the market, the downshift is a positive development.”

Survey: More LGBT Married Couples Aiming at Homeownership

A new survey has concluded that the 2015 ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court to legalize samesex marriages has encouraged more LGBT married couples to continued on page 16

FHFA Proposes New Housing Goals

The Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA) is forecasting that the level of commercial and multifamily mortgage originations

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MBA: Lower Commercial and Multifamily Originations Forecasts

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The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) has proposed a rule that would establish new singlefamily and housing goals for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac for 2018 through 2020.

In the single-family housing sector, the FHFA is maintaining three of its four current initiatives: a low-income home purchase goal of 24 percent, a very low-income home purchase goal of six percent and a low-income refinance goal of 21 percent. Only the low-income areas home purchase sub-goal would change, from the current 14 percent to a new 15 percent target.

In the multifamily sector, the FHFA proposed keeping its current very low-income goal of 60,000 unites and its low-income small multifamily sub-goal of 10,000, but would increase its low-income goal from 300,000 to 315,000 units.

The FHFA asked interested parties to submit comments on this proposed rule within 60 days of its publication in the Federal Register.

Building Relationships Via Social Media

By Brian Dietderich

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o you remember when the “Back to the Future” sequel came out, and the year 2015 seemed so far away?

Well, the future is now. Welcome to 2017! With a click, tap or simple voice command, you can post anything to your favorite social media site. Today, people share everything on these platforms—from small events like their favorite slushy flavor at the gas station to life-changing moments, such as buying their first home.

People use social media to digitally document the day-today happenings of their lives and share these “digital diaries” with the world. Yes, the times are indeed changing. More than 75 percent of Americans own smartphones, and we are more plugged in than ever before. That connectivity, in turn, also means we’re sharing more than ever before.

So how does that impact us as a business? It means that we, as a modern company, have a certain responsibility to be involved in these different platforms. They allow us to provide a glimpse behind the curtain of what we do. But why on earth would anyone want to do that? Don’t you want to keep your company, its inner workings, and everything that contributes to your success a secret?

The quick answer is “No,” and the reason is simple: Sharing this information builds credibility and trust. Our transparency on social media shows that we are forthcoming and authentic, which is why we want to share all the fun things our team members are involved with. We want people to hear about the wonderful work our people do on a daily basis. We want everyone to know that we have the best team.

But at the end of the day, our focus at Class Appraisal is (and always has been) about building relationships. This includes relationships with our team members, vendors, clients and anyone who has contact with the company. Social media is simply another outlet to build those relationships.

But why would we focus on that rather than selling?

Relationships are messy, complicated, awful, beautiful things with ups and downs. As with anything in life, this is where the work comes into play. We do the work to make it work. There is no easy route. There is no quick win.

The path to success requires patience, understanding, knowledge and a steadfast desire to triumph. That’s why this is so important—not only to us, but to our clients (both current and future). These glimpses not only help build those relationships, but also solidify them. The question then becomes, “What are successful relationships built on?” This one’s easy: trust. And at the end of the day, we believe trust is what starts us down that path.

nmp news flash

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pursue homeownership.

According to the 2017 National Association of Gay and Lesbian Real Estate Professionals (NAGLREP) Homeownership Survey, 47 percent of NAGLREP agents stated more LGBT married couples decided to become homeowners after the Supreme Court’s ruling. Fifty percent of respondents stated that a sizeable number of their LGBT clients will become homeowners in the coming year, with 49 percent of that number as “move up” buyers and 18 percent as downsizers.

Furthermore, 29 percent of the real estate agents said a significant number of their LGBT clients would move from urban centers to the suburbs at a higher rate in the coming year, while 24 percent forecasted a suburban-to-urban movement.

And 34 percent of surveyed agents indicated many of their LGBT clients will purchase a second home in the next 12 months.

“The confidence we gained, coupled with society’s continued acceptance of the community, is having an impact,” said NAGLREP Founder Jeff Berger.

“Marriage will likely bring more wonderful life events including children, homeownership and a potential increase in suburban living.”

Berger added the legalization of same-sex marriage would also prevent potential difficulties that could arise property ownership.

“I do believe the LGBT community should be more aware of the legal and title issues because unmarried couples do not automatically share their same protections,” he said.

Carrington Charitable Foundation Raises More Than $500,000 at Gala

battlefields through CCF initiatives that provide: l Mobility: CCF financially supports The Veterans Airlift Command (VAC), which provides free private air transportation to wounded Veterans of Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts through a national network of volunteer aircraft owners and pilots. l Stability: Carrington House provides custom, adaptive homes for catastrophically injured veterans. l Purpose and prosperity: CCF’s newest initiative, the Veteran Support Program, supports veterans’ return to civilian life after their time of service.

“We couldn’t be more pleased with the results of the Gala, and we are deeply grateful for the generosity of our donors for their support of the Carrington Charitable Foundation mission and the wounded veterans we serve,” said Shelly Lawrence, Executive Director of Community Relations for Carrington Charitable Foundation. “Our commitment to supporting our military heroes has been strengthened by the success of this inaugural event.

In keeping with the success of CCF’s fundraising events on the West Coast, the Greenwich Gala was CCF’s effort to broaden awareness of the Foundation’s mission, donor base and veteran involvement on the East Coast.

The Gala’s activities began with an invitation-only Welcome Reception hosted by Putnam Leasing & Miller Motors, followed by a day at The Greenwich Concours d’Elegance. The evening Gala included a number of featured speakers from CCF, The Carrington Companies and honored military veterans who have directly benefitted from CCF’s Signature Programs.

Bipartisan Overhaul of GSEs Reportedly in the Works

Brian Dietderich is the Marketing and Integration Manager at Class Appraisal, a Michigan-based Nationwide Appraisal Management Company. Brian has 15-plus years in the fields of design and marketing. He may be reached by phone at (866) 333-8311 or e-mail BDietderich@ClassAppraisal.com.

SPONSORED EDITORIAL

Carrington Charitable Foundation (CCF), the non-profit organization of The Carrington Companies, recently hosted its First Annual Gala at the Belle Haven Club in Greenwich, Conn. The inaugural event raised more than $500,000, which will be used to support veterans returning from post 9/11

A bipartisan duo of senators is reportedly working on a proposal that would break up the continued on page 24

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By Mat Ishbia

Freddie Mac Appraisal Waivers reddie Mac now offers ACE (Automated Collateral Evaluation) as an alternative to Freddie Mac’s DU and Property Inspection Waiver (PIW) process. Now, through LP, mortgage brokers can do conventional refinance loans with no appraisals. This is a very positive change for everyone in the industry. Now, you can run loans through Fannie Mae DU and get a PIW, or run them through Freddie Mac and get an ACE. This went live on June 19 and is available nationwide. Brokers can really help borrowers by saving them time and money in their loan transaction.

ACE guidelines: l Rate/term refinances l Eighty percent LTV l Primary residences l One-unit properties

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Shocking Closing Stats Currently, 83 percent of loans closing throughout the market have 680+ FICO scores. Only 5.3 percent of closings have FICOs under 640. That doesn’t mean anything negative about those borrowers with FICOs under 640, it just shows that those loans aren’t closing as efficiently as the loans with 680+ FICOs. Considering the new changes with tax liens and judgments, peoples’ scores are going up. Brokers have a great opportunity to utilize higher-FICO borrowers to close loans fast and efficiently in order to gain more referrals as they grow their business.

2017 Area Median Income Limits Area Median Income (AMI) numbers have changed for Freddie Mac (as of June 13) and Fannie Mae (beginning July 8). This means that more borrowers will fit into the Home Possible and HomeReady programs with Freddie and Fannie, respectively. More than 80 percent of census tract AMI limits throughout America went up. This is a big opportunity for brokers to get borrowers into a Home Possible and HomeReady program that they couldn’t at the beginning of June. It will be a cheaper payment than FHA for borrowers in many situations. Brokers should take the time to research which borrowers and homes could qualify for those programs.

Mat Ishbia is president and CEO of United Wholesale Mortgage, a Troy, Mich.-based provider of mortgages for independent brokers nationwide. One of the nation’s leading advocates of independent mortgage brokers and wholesale lending, Mat has changed the lending platform, turning UWM into a $20 billion company and a top national workplace.

SPONSORED EDITORIAL

new to market

continued from page 13

closes and funds them, and sells the closed loans on the secondary market, returning revenue back to the credit union that is well above the industry average.

“Member relationships are the core of any credit union’s business, and this third party origination system is designed with that in mind,” said Jackie Adams, Vice President of eCU Mortgage. “We help credit unions leverage those relationships and deliver topflight service without the expense of building their own loan origination systems.” eCU Mortgage’s third-party origination keeps credit unions involved in the process so they don’t lose touch with their members, Adams explained. eCU Mortgage further adds a high level of service that includes minimizing the time between application and loan closing while maximizing the transparency of the entire process.

“By giving a client credit union a seat on our system, they see what we see. They can track the progress of every loan and know exactly what is going on at any point in the origination process,” said Adams. “It allows them to control pricing and the locking of the loan, so they can work on behalf of their members every step of the way.”

OpenClose Launches New Corporate Site

to cater to top 20 lenders that have multiple business channels and complex operations.”

OpenClose’s LenderAssist LOS and other solutions were all engineered from the ground up using the same code base, and it has been owned and operated by the same principles since the company was founded in 1999.

LenderAssist’s comprehensive end-to-end functionality was not created by way of multiple acquisitions, which typically rope together disparate technologies that can be prone to issues; or, via integrations with many third-party vendors that are done in order to make up for system deficiencies.

“We have been boarding top-tier, very large lending entities that are successfully leveraging our LOS as a centralized platform to automate all business channels and workflows,” said Vince Furey, Senior Vice President of Lending Solutions at OpenClose. “Our new positioning showcases the immense power that OpenClose’s enterprise-class mortgage software solutions offer and how they are very flexible, scalable and wellsupported by our staff. While we have the proven scalability to support the largest national lenders, OpenClose is really the ideal solution and longterm technology partner for any size lending organization.”

Portfolio Underwriter Now Available From Calyx Software

OpenClose has unveiled a new corporate Web site to better position the company’s expanded enterprise-class solution set, customer profile focus and long-term value proposition.

“We’ve grown exponentially over the past five years, and as such, had a need to ensure that the positioning of OpenClose as a company and its products are in line with our corporate mission, business strategy, customer commitment and ongoing technology innovation efforts,” said JP Kelly, President of OpenClose. “This new Web site is designed to clearly convey our comprehensive solution offering and our ability

Calyx Software has announced that Portfolio Underwriter, an automated underwriting system (AUS) from LoanScorecard, is now available to Point and PointCentral clients.

Portfolio Underwriter allows portfolio lenders to customize credit decisioning and safely originate non-agency loans that they intend to put on their balance sheets. It captures a portfolio lender’s program guidelines within its engine and delivers a rules-based continued on page 96

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Chris Freck, MBA, CMPS, NMLS#241125

NAMB Kickstart Grant Recipient and proud new owner of EstaR mortgage ortgage NationalMortgageProfessional.com

A NAMB Program Founding Sponsor UWM

n National Mortgage Professional Magazine n JULY 2017

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NAMB President’s Message: July 2017 Honor, Courage and Passion to Serve: An NAMB Story In Andy Andrews’ novel, The Traveler’s Gift, a great paragraph struck me so profound that I wanted to write about it this month as it relates to NAMB and the members that we serve.

“Every man (woman) of honor and courage will be faced with unjust criticism, but never forget that unjust criticism has no impact whatsoever upon that truth. And the only sure way to avoid criticism is to do nothing and be nothing.”

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This was a statement made in this fictional book by Abraham Lincoln in the story. It may have been a fictional statement, but WOW does it leave an impact.

So many times in my association career (CAMP and NAMB), I have written about the call to service. I have looked backed and assessed “THE WHY.” It can take so many forms for all of us of the “Why We Serve,” The Calling, The Ego, The Spiritual Reward. No matter the motivation, it moves our association forward.

This month’s message may sound like it’s from a Book of the Month Club, but reading does inspire me and I hope it does the same for you. While listening to a great Podcast from Brian Buffini as he interviewed the author of Love is the Killer App by Tim Sanders, I was struck by his phrase “Passion of Service.” We all have had this at one time or another. We just need the right inspiration to evoke this passion.

The reason why this is so poignant to me now, is that I am looking back at what WE have done to insure that NAMB and our state associations are thriving. I have to tell you … it’s been rough for all of us. I know that we get distracted and sidelined from our commitment to service, but I want all of you reading to take a minute and think about your own personal joy of service … taking an hour to be on a committee call or talking to a new potential member. How did that make you feel? Harness that feeling.

Embrace that action that gave you that feeling. Make it move you and your association forward.

This industry has done so much for all of us to allow us financial freedom to buy our first house or have our kids go to college without loans. Isn’t that a great reward for service? I think so and I think that all of us need to do that “One More Thing” this year. We all have some extra time, so squeeze out that time to have that passion for service.

I’d like to leave you with an excerpt from Theodore Roosevelt’s speech “The Man in the Arena:” “The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena … who spends himself in a worthy cause … so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.”

Thank you and Namaste’ Fred Kreger, CMC is vice president of Enterprise Retail Production at American Pacific Mortgage. He is currently the president of NAMB—The Association of Mortgage Professionals and past president of the California Association of Mortgage Professionals (CAMP). He can be reached by e-mail at Fred.Kreger@APMortgage.com or call (661) 400-8905.

Using Social Media as a Mortgage Professional

By Nathan S. Pierce, CRMS

There is no doubt that how business is done has changed drastically with more technologies available to us. Arguably one of the biggest differences comes with the way we communicate. Today, most communications are routed through the Internet and sent and received through some sort of electronic device, i.e., computer, smartphone, tablet, watch, etc.

Keeping this in mind, it is important to stay in communication with our customers using the devices and platforms they prefer to use.

One of the most preferred methods of communication today is social media. Although social media wasn’t originally designed for business use, one cannot deny the vast number of people using these platforms for marketing and communication.

Often time social media for business is thought to be just an advertising platform, in reality there are many more practical ways to stay in touch with your customers using social media. Let’s look at four different ways that business communications online through social networking are evolving in the business world: 1. Staying connected Rather than posting information on products or services, most companies are using social networks as a way of connecting with their customers. Their focus is more on engaging with their clients rather than selling them a product. Instead of posting about low interest rates, many are instead sharing details of something more personal, like photos of their families, or their furry new friend.

They are also posting about their favorite charity or an issue they are passionate about, like saving the environment. This builds trust with people who are therefore more likely to do business with you.

2. Marketing Belonging to a social media site is like having your own, personal broadcast network without spending a fortune on more traditional advertising. In the past, customers could take days or weeks to share a positive or negative experience involving a business transaction, while it takes only minutes to accomplish this online.

This gives a company or individual a chance to respond to information quickly and stay in touch with their customers. That way you can acknowledge a compliment or address an issue quickly and more efficiently. If there is a problem, at least you have the ability to remedy the situation and make it publicly known that you are dealing with the dilemma.

3. Image Connecting with people through social media outlets gives them a more human appearance. Often companies are allowing their employees to blog or post to these sites thereby making them appear more likeable and compassionate.

So forget the old days of trying to keep some kind of unified front showing a polished company image and allow people to see your staff as just that … people. This also builds trust with your clients and will reach others with similar interests.

4. Availability If New York and Las Vegas are the cities that never sleep, then Facebook and Twitter are the places where your business is never closed. People are turning to these networks because they can address a situation on their own terms and at a time that works best for them. Even if the reply isn’t instantaneous, it still happens nonetheless and the customer can get the response whenever they are available to receive it.

With technology taking over the marketplace, more and more mortgage professionals are turning to social media to communicate rather than using other means of communication, such as, telephone.

But no matter how archaic, businesses and individual mortgage

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professionals almost always need to be reachable by phone.

The future is here so consider all of your options to stay in contact with your customers.

He would also set various goals for me and let me loose to see if I could accomplish them on my own, all the while watching from a distance to see how these projects helped me to develop. He then made a point to sit down and tell me what he’d observed about me through the project Nathan S. Pierce, CRMS is Communications Committee process, what he thought was worth keeping—and definitely what he Chairman and Board Member for NAMB—The Association would immediately throw out. He also focused on character and values, of Mortgage Professionals and President of NAMB+. He is which nurtured my personal growth as well as my leadership abilities. also President of Advanced Funding Home Mortgage Loans in Salt Lake City, Utah. He may be reached by 4. Mentors offer encouragement and help keep us going phone at (801) 272-0600 or e-mail Inspirational entrepreneur Oprah Winfrey stated, “A mentor is someone NPierce@AdvFund.com. who allows you to see the hope inside yourself.” They are there no matter what and offer moral support sprinkled heavily with cheerleading.

There were times that, if there wasn’t a mentor there for me, I could have easily, “caved-in,” emotionally, or given up on the business. However, I had a mentor and each one I had wouldn’t let me stop but provided the encouragement and guidance that gave me hope and confidence that I could do whatever was asked of me.

NAMB Education Corner: Step Up and Become a Mentor By Bob Sweeney, CRMS

Our mortgage industry needs your expertise and mentorship. Ever since I have been in the financial services industry, which now expands more than 35 years, I have been in numerous discussions talking about the need for mentors but no one ever steps up and volunteers. They “Talk the Talk,” but do not “Walk the Walk.” In doing some research for this article, I came across and excellent article written by a columnist for Inc.com and a contributor to Forbes, John Rampton. John’s column is titled “10 Reasons Why a Mentor is a Must,” and the following is the column in its entirety.

2. Mentors can see where we need to improve where we often cannot Movie maker George Lucas noted, “Mentors have a way of seeing more of our faults that we would like. It’s the only way we grow.” They will always be brutally honest with you and tell you exactly how it is rather than downplay any weaknesses they see in you.

This constructive criticism that my mentor offered helped me to see things in myself that I could not recognize. I appreciated that insight because I didn’t want someone to pad my ego. (Well, I did want someone to pad my ego, but I had to decide that the business was more important.) Instead, I wanted to know exactly where I was lacking so I could improve those areas.

3. Mentors find ways to stimulate our personal and professional growth Another famous movie director explained, “The delicate balance of mentoring someone is not creating them in your own image, but giving them the opportunity to create themselves.” My mentor would often pose questions for me to think about and ask me to come back with answers later.

7. Mentors are trusted advisers In the world of business, it can be hard to know who to trust—and that you can trust someone, especially with proprietary information or intellectual property. Since he was an objective third-party with no stake in any idea or venture, he was happy to let me know what he thought. In return, I knew that he would keep everything I told him confidential rather than sell it to someone else or steal an idea from me.

8. Mentors can be connectors Playing a dual role of teacher and connector, a mentor can provide access to those within your industry that are willing to invest in your company, offer their skills and expertise, introduce you to talent that can fuel your business and help you get closer to your target audience. My mentor willingly shared his network with me, taking me to events and making introductions that led to many opportunities I would not have otherwise had.

9. Mentors have the experiences you can learn from to prevent making the same mistakes beginners make Starting a business is challenging enough, so if you can skip doing things the hard way, why wouldn’t you? A mentor has been there, right where you are, and has made numerous mistakes that they can now use as a basis for helping others to skip the devastating effects of not knowing.

I am all about doing things smarter, so my mentor shared many stories about the mistakes he made along the way that became learning lessons for me minus the pain and lost resources that come from making those mistakes.

10. Mentors are free, which makes them priceless in more ways than one Typically, a mentoring relationship will grow organically through connections within your industry and network. A mentor does not do it for the money. Instead, they are driven by the satisfaction of helping

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1. Mentors provide information and knowledge As Benjamin Franklin said, “Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn.” When I was starting out, I had no idea what was involved in running a business, including making a business plan, budgeting, handling daily operations, making strategic decisions or running a marketing campaign. With a mentor there from the start, I tapped into a wealth of knowledge that got me up to speed faster and shortened that learning curve.

6. Mentors are sounding boards so we can bounce ideas off them for an unfiltered opinion When I started, I had numerous ideas for all types of business ventures and products. I relayed all of these to my mentor who then helped me see which ones had potential and why others were better left alone. I appreciated his candor because I might have otherwise pursued a business idea that had no legs.

NationalMortgageProfessional.com

Ten Reasons Why a Mentor is a Must As an entrepreneur, it’s exciting to go it alone and create something on your own. However, the reality is that, while you have a great idea, you may not know exactly what you should be doing with your business at which times to develop it into a sustainable business.

I’ve had several mentors over the years and learned a large amount of valuable lessons from each and every one of them. From not making certain business decisions to fostering certain partnerships, a mentor can help guide you through your entrepreneurial journey.

Here are 10 other reasons why you need someone like a mentor:

5. Mentors are disciplinarians that create necessary boundaries that we cannot set for ourselves I experienced a lot of tough love from my mentor. He did this because he understood that being an entrepreneur can be challenging when it comes to self-motivation and self-discipline. He took on this role of parent to teach me good work habits and provided the boundaries for me to work within. This solidified my work ethic, sharpened my focus, (I really missed some important essentials), and clarified my priorities in a way that I could not do on my own.

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another entrepreneur, paying it forward from a similar experience they had when starting their own business.

I feel fortunate enough to have had this experience and am now in a position to return the favor to others that are just starting out. Not only is the price right, but your mentor is also providing priceless access to everything noted on this list and more.

Having a mentor is not a sign of weakness; it shows you are smart enough and are driven enough to succeed.

I still keep in contact with three of my five original Mentors dating back over 30 years ago. I could not have achieved my success in the mortgage business without their help, leadership and guidance. I want to challenge each of you to Step Up and become a Mentor. The NAMB needs you. The Industry needs you. The individuals needing Mentoring need you.

I am going to start keeping a list of potential Mentors as part of my responsibilities as Chairman of the NAMB Education Committee. Are you going to Step Up? I will be publishing this Mentor List monthly in National Mortgage Professional Magazine. Be one of the first mentors for the NAMB and add your name to the list below: 1. Bob Sweeney, CRMS 6.____________________________ 2.______________________________ 7.____________________________ 3.______________________________ 8.____________________________ 4.______________________________ 9.____________________________ 5.______________________________ 10.____________________________

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We welcome any input from all mortgage professionals. If you would be interested in joining NAMB’s Education Committee and become part of our future success in the education of our independent mortgage companies and mortgage loan originators, please feel free to contact me. If you are not a NAMB member, now is a great time to become a member. Go to your state association Web site or NAMB.org to join as a Professional Member.

Bob Sweeney, CRMS is Mortgage Sales Manager for Teachers Credit Union, Director for NAMB–The Association of Mortgage Professionals and serves as NAMB Education Committee Chairman. He can be reached by phone at (317) 625-3287 or e-mail at RSweeney@TCUnet.com.

Join the NAMB KickStart Initiative By Rocke Andrews, CMC, CRMS NAMB KickStart has been in motion since November of last year. In that time, we have funded 40 individuals in the starting up of new small business mortgage origination companies in the amount of almost $400,000. Through the generosity of our founding sponsor, United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM), the program is now fully operational.

It is time now for other industry partners to join in and help increase the third-party origination (TPO) channel.

Become a KickStart champion At NAMB, we’ve always been committed to supporting mortgage professionals through education and opportunity. The NAMB KickStart Independent Mortgage Program was created to help us achieve our goals by helping mortgage professionals achieve theirs.

Simply put, upon approval, the program provides start-up funding–up to $10,000–for mortgage professionals who want to open their own independent brokerage firm. The KickStart program has already awarded funds to 40 qualified recipients since its inception, with 14 additional applicants currently in the approval process.

Be the change that grows the industry Join our cause today and help us expand the independent mortgage industry by becoming a KickStart Sponsor. While there is no minimum

sponsorship requirement, our most popular sponsorship levels include: Gold KickStart Sponsor: $100,000 l Mentions about your sponsorship in press releases and magazine articles.

Platinum KickStart Sponsor: $250,000 l Logo placement on the KickStart Web site with hotlinks to your company Web site. l Mentions about your sponsorship in press releases and magazine articles.

Diamond KickStart Sponsor: $500,000 l KickStart Review Committee Seat. l Logo placement on KickStart Web site with hotlinks to your company Web site. l Mentions about your sponsorship in press releases and magazine articles.

So whether you are a big company looking to make a difference or a smaller company wanting to help out, all donations are welcomed and will be acknowledged.

For more information, contact me at (520) 886-7283, e-mail KickStart@NAMB.org or visit NAMBKickStart.com.

Rocke Andrews, CMC, CRMS is Immediate Past President of NAMB—The Association of Mortgage Professionals. He may be reached by e-mail at RAndrews@LendingArizona.net.

NAMB Director Bettencourt Honored by Greater Boston Association of Realtors Richard Bettencourt, CRMS (pictured here second from left), Member of the Board of Directors of NAMB—The Association of Mortgage Professionals and Manager of Mortgage Network Inc.’s Danvers Square, Mass. branch, has been named Affiliate Member of the Year by the Greater Boston Association of Realtors (GBAR).

Each year, GBAR recognizes the active volunteer involvement, charitable acts and business success of its members. The Affiliate Member of the Year Award acknowledges the involvement of industry product and service providers for their active participation in GBAR programs and activities, and their general support of the association, its mission and the REALTOR membership.

“Richard is very deserving of this honor,” said Brian Koss, Executive Vice President of Mortgage Network. “Public service is a big part of what we do, and Richard exemplifies that to the fullest.”

Bettencourt has been helping people buy homes or refinance their existing mortgages for more than 14 years. A Certified Military Housing Specialist (CMHS), Bettencourt for the past five years has served on the NAMB’s Board of Directors, where he also serves as Chairperson of the VA Loan Committee and is Past Chairman of the Government Affairs Committee. He was also recently appointed to the Mortgage Bankers Association’s VA Working Committee Group. In 2016, he was recognized as one of the “Top 50 Most Connected Mortgage Professionals” in America by National Mortgage Professional Magazine.

“I am truly honored by this distinction,” Bettencourt said. “It has and continues to be my honor to serve and support our community.”

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NAMB+ is an independent, wholly-owned, for-profit marketing subsidiary of NAMB, RTheSAssociation P E C Tof Mortgage I V E Professionals.

Dear Mortgage Professional, Its Social Media month at NMP! Summer is a great time to up your social media game, as borrowers and referral partners are on the go and away from their offices more frequently, but everyone stays connected to their social media accounts.

You can save big and dramatically enhance your social media presence and connectivity with two of our NAMB+ Endorsed Providers – Social5 and eEndorsements.

Social5 is not a social media self-help tool. Rather, Social5 puts a dedicated team of graphic artists, professional writers, and technology experts to work for you. They will build new business Facebook and Twitter pages and create and publish custom weekly posts for you. If you want a social media and mobile marketing strategy that gets noticed, visit NAMBPlus.com and call John Foote at Social5 for a FREE consultation,

demo, and to receive your special NAMB Member discounted pricing. eEndorsements makes it easy to capture customer reviews and publish testimonials where they matter most, and can be easily shared – on social media. Through eEndorsements you can automatically share your great reviews on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn, and easily invite your clients to share their reviews on sites like Yelp and Zillow. Visit NAMBPlus.com for more information and a special NAMB Members-only discount code that will save you 25% off your subscription to eEndorsements.

Sincerely,

Nathan Pierce, CRMS, CMP, President NAMB+, Inc. l npierce@advfund.com

See below for a complete listing of the current NAMB+ Endorsed Providers and visit NAMBPlus.com for more information.

Full-service mortgage credit reporting company serving the nation’s financial community. Avantus provides custom mortgage credit reports, fraud and compliance solutions, and innovative lead generation products available exclusively to Avantus customers.

Learn more at Avantus.com.

NAMB members receive a discount off Brokers Compliance Group compliance support programs.

NAMB members receive a 15% discount on all Custom Canvas Prints products and services!

InfoSight, Inc. offers proven and affordable cyber security, risk management, IT Infrastructure and regulatory

MortgageHippo Swift allows loan originators of all sizes to deliver a modern borrowing experience, significantly improve borrower conversions, reduce origination costs and integrate with other innovative technologies in the mortgage industry. NAMB members will receive a 25% discount. Please visit www.mortgagehippo.com/swift/.

Sarma gives you access to their extensive resources including: merged reports from the three top credit bureaus, CreditXpert tools, AVM Reports, SocialValidate, TRV Verification, Interface with over 30 LOS, Fannie and Freddie connection, Verification of employment/deposit and much more. Please visit http://www.sarma.com/quickqual/ NAMB Members will receive a Twenty-Five Percent (25%) discount off of the regular price with their NAMB Membership.

Simplii VOIP business phone solutions include all the features and functionality of a high end business phone system without the high costs. We offer all NAMB members a 10% discount off their phone services. For more information please e-mail stevew@simplii.net

SYNCRO connects mobile salespeople to their office website leads. NAMB Members receive a 10% discount off regular prices for monthly unlimited SYNCRO Web Chat packages.

23 The Bond Exchange is a national surety agency specializing in providing mortgage license bonds to thousands of mortgage professionals across the country.

USA Business Lending is the nation’s premier commercial brokerage firm representing over 3500 lenders.

NAMBPLUS Login Instructions Username = Member Number Password = First initial of your first name capitalized and your last name with the first letter of the last name capitalized (example = JStevens)

If you are not a NAMB member please visit NAMB.org and join today to gain access to NAMBPLUS.com and the many benefits NAMB members receive!

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eEndorsements promotes your success by making it easy to capture customer reviews, control your content, and publish your testimonials where they matter to drive new business. Automatically share your reviews on Facebook, Twitter and Linkedin.

Easily invite your clients to share reviews to sites like Yelp and Zillow. eEndorsements will also hosts a review profile page indexed and found in Google Search. eEndorsements offers a 34% discount to NAMB Members. For more info please visit http://eendorsements.com/namb.

MassMutual Disability Income Through an arrangement with Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company (MassMutual), NAMB members have an opportunity to apply for individual disability income insurance (DI) at discounted rates.

Learn more by calling Andrew Berman at 516-652-1819

If you want a social and mobile marketing strategy that gets noticed contact Social5 today for a FREE consultation and demo and to receive your NAMB member discount pricing.

NationalMortgageProfessional.com

CalSurance® offers competitively priced Professional Liability Insurance for NAMB members. Multiple coverage options and an easy application process are available.

Visit www.calsurance.com/namb for program details and to apply.

compliance solutions. Visit www.infosightinc.com or contact us at 305-828-1003 / 877-577-9703.

Reverse Mortgages: From Stigma to Smart Business Strategy

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he reverse mortgage has historically been seen as a product of last resort. But in recent years, a number of positive changes have led to new benefits and safeguards for both lenders and borrowers. As a result, perception of Home Equity Conversion Mortgages (HECMs), commonly known as reverse mortgages, has been shifting.

They’re now understood to be a smart strategy for older Americans, and a significant business growth opportunity for mortgage originators.

A HECM is a highly flexible loan option specifically designed for homeowners and homebuyers age 62-plus. FHAinsured1 HECM products include refinance, line of credit, and home purchase options, all with a flexible repayment feature: Borrowers can pay as much or as little as they like toward principal and interest each month. As with any home-secured loan, they must keep current with property taxes, insurance and maintenance.

This product serves an expanding demographic that is feeling a financial pinch in retirement. According to a recent study conducted by the National Council on Aging and funded by Reverse Mortgage Funding LLC (RMF), 83 percent of older adults are concerned about having enough money to live comfortably in retirement and worry about outliving their savings. Paired with another of the study’s key findings–that home equity represents a whopping 60 to 80 percent of their total net worth–an enormous opportunity is revealed: To deliver a potentially more suitable solution to this important consumer segment.

Take the HECM Line of Credit, for example. It has several key advantages over a traditional home equity line of credit, including the flexible repayment feature, which gives borrowers greater financial control. Additionally, the unused portion of their credit line grows over time, providing more available funds. And its nonrecourse feature means they will never owe more than the home is worth.

For older Americans looking to buy a new home, the HECM for Purchase option makes it easier for them to afford the one they really want. It also allows them to maintain more funds to spend on other things. This could increase the buying power for a large portion of your customers. In fact, 25 percent of all new homebuyers are age 60 and above.

Adding this versatile loan option to your product mix is not difficult. RMF, an industry leader, provides the expertise and resources to help originators seamlessly enter the business and excel. To learn more or register for an educational Webinar, call (866) 318-2981 or visit Partners.ReverseFunding.com/LearnMore.

Footnote 1—This material has not been reviewed, approved, or issued by HUD, FHA or any government agency. The company is not affiliated with, or acting on behalf of or at the direction of, HUD, FHA or any government agency.

NOT FOR CONSUMER USE © 2017 Reverse Mortgage Funding LLC, 1455 Broad St., 2nd Floor, Bloomfield, NJ 07003. Company NMLS ID# 1019941. www.nmlsconsumeraccess.org. Equal Housing Lender. Not all products and options are available in all states. Terms subject to change without notice.

Certain conditions and fees apply. This is not a loan commitment. All loans subject to approval. L1093-Exp062018 RMF delivers leading products so originators can grow their business by adding HECMs. Call (866) 318-2981 or visit Partners.ReverseFunding.com/LearnMore.

SPONSORED EDITORIAL

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government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs).

According to a Bloomberg report that cites unnamed individuals who allegedly have “knowledge of the matter,” Sens.

Bob Corker (R-TN) and Mark Warner (D-VA) have been working since the beginning of the year to jump-start the long-stalled GSE reform; Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac were put in federal conservatorship in September 2008 and continue to dominate the secondary market. Among the reported ideas that the senators have considered is dividing the GSEs’ single-family businesses from their multifamily businesses, and then split the single-family operations again into even smaller companies.

Sen. Warner told a recent Mortgage Bankers Association conference that he and Sen. Corker had found consensus on several issues, including developing a system that maintains the 30-year mortgage.

However, neither senator has offered a timeline on when their finalized proposal would be put forward.

Commercial/Multifamily Mortgage Debt Rises Above $3 Trillion

According to the Mortgage Bankers Association (MBA), total commercial/multifamily debt outstanding rose to $3.01 trillion at the end of the first quarter of 2017, the first time it has broken the $3 trillion mark. Multifamily mortgage debt outstanding rose to $1.17 trillion, an increase of $23.4 billion, or 2.0 percent, from the fourth of quarter of 2016.

“The amount of commercial and multifamily mortgage debt outstanding continued to grow during the first quarter,” said Jamie Woodwell, MBA’s Vice President of Commercial Real Estate Research. “Almost twothirds of the growth came from increases in multifamily mortgage debt outstanding, and 80 percent of that growth came from portfolios and MBS held or guaranteed by federal government agencies and the GSEs. In addition, recent releases from the Federal Reserve show that during the

second quarter of 2017, bank multifamily portfolios stopped growing and remain relatively flat, while their holdings of other commercial property loans have continued to grow.”

The level of commercial/multifamily mortgage debt outstanding rose by $37.6 billion in the first quarter of 2017, a 1.3 percent increase over the fourth quarter of 2016, with three of the four major investor groups increasing their holdings.

The four major investor groups are: bank and thrift; commercial mortgage backed securities (CMBS), collateralized debt obligation (CDO) and other asset backed securities (ABS) issues; federal agency and government sponsored enterprise (GSE) portfolios and mortgage backed securities (MBS); and life insurance companies.

Commercial banks continue to hold the largest share of commercial/multifamily mortgages, $1.2 trillion, or 41 percent of the total. Agency and GSE portfolios and MBS are the second largest holders of commercial/multifamily mortgages, holding $540 billion, or 18 percent of the total. CMBS, CDO and other ABS issues hold $438 billion, or 15 percent of the total, and life insurance companies hold $436 billion, or 15 percent of the total. Many life insurance companies, banks and the GSEs purchase and hold CMBS, CDO and other ABS issues. These loans appear in the “CMBS, CDO and other ABS” category.

FHFA Reaches $5.5B Settlement With RBS

The Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) has reached a $5.5 billion agreement with Royal Bank of Scotland Group (RBS) that settles charges that the financial institution allegedly violated federal and state securities laws in connection with its private-label residential mortgage-backed securities trusts that were purchased by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac between 2005 and 2007.

Under the terms of the continued on page 26

Don’t take our word for it … here’s what brokers are saying about Caliber Wholesale

Wholesale Lending

Here at Caliber Home Loans, Inc., we make time to spend more time assisting our wholesale business partners, no matter how busy the markets may be. If you ever wished it was all about you, relax … at Caliber Wholesale, it is all about you. (And your clients, of course.)

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If you still haven’t discovered why we’re the nation’s #2 Wholesale Lender, contact us today at nmp@caliberhomeloans.com or visit us at www.caliberwholesale.com

Caliber Home Loans, Inc.,3701 Regent Boulevard, Irving, TX 75063. (NMLS #15622). 1-800-401-6587. Copyright©2017. All Rights Reserved. Equal Housing Lender. For real estate and lending professionals only and not for distribution to consumers. This communication may contain information that is privileged, confidential, legally privileged, and/or exempt from disclosure under applicable law. Distribution to the general public is prohibited.

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Coming soon … more of what you’re asking for.

Earlier this year we introduced The Ultimate Home Buyer Experience. This high-tech digital mortgage toolkit enabled our business partners to fast-track homebuyers to closing with a lot less paperwork.

Now we’re working on a mobile app that will help ensure loan pipelines are always flowing - even when you’re attending an Open House, closing or client meeting.

Uniform Mortgage Closing Data Set Approaches Mandatory Compliance Deadline

By Andrew Liput

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nder the direction of the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae have been working together since 2010 to develop and implement uniform mortgage data standards for the single-family loans they purchase and securitize. The capturing of consistent and standard data points is a method to permit the government-sponsored enterprises (GSEs) to effectively assess risk on the mortgages that they purchase and create efficiencies throughout the industry generally. The efforts have been labeled the General Uniform Mortgage Data Program, or “UMDP,” and beginning in September 2017, another data collection requirement will take effect when the Uniform Closing Dataset program requirements will become mandatory for lenders doing business with Fannie and Freddie.

In 2010, the GSEs implemented the Uniform Appraisal Dataset (UAD) and sought to define all fields required for an appraisal submission for specific appraisal forms and standardizes definitions and responses for a key subset of fields, and the Uniform Loan Delivery Dataset (ULDD) which identified all the data points that the GSEs require at loan delivery, based on loan types, business conditions and other GSE-specific requirements. Both took effect in 2012.

In 2014, the agencies established a Uniform Closing Dataset (UCD) requirement, and then in 2016 a Uniform Loan Application Dataset (ULAD). The ULAD has no scheduled implementation date as of yet, however this year, in September, the UCD requirements become mandatory.

Fannie and Freddie define the Uniform Closing Dataset (UCD) as “a standard industry dataset that supports the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB’s) Closing Disclosure.” The information to be collected matches current UCD details with additional data points, which include the real estate agent and settlement agent’s license information beyond just a license number but also including whether the license is issued by a federal, state or local issuing agency, the name of the agency, and the issuing date. This information is not presently provided in the UCD. Lenders are expected to collect and report this data on each loan sold to Fannie and Freddie. Lenders will be required to deliver the UCD for loans that have Note dates on or after Sept. 25, 2017.

According to Fannie and Freddie the purpose of collecting the identified data is to “analyze loan performance, develop business policies, and make loan purchase decisions.”

For more information about the program and to start now preparing to ready your operations for the Sept. 25 deadline, please visit https://www.fanniemae.com/singlefamily/uniformmortgage-data-program#.

Andrew Liput is CEO of Secure Insight, a risk analytics firm offering vendor management services addressing settlement agent risk. He can be reached by e-mail at ALiput@SecureSettlements.com.

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agreement, RBS will pay approximately $4.525 billion to Freddie Mac and approximately $975 million to Fannie Mae, while certain claims against Royal Bank of Scotland related to the securities involved will be released. The bank is not required to offer an admission of guilt as part of this settlement.

The FHFA added that this case represents its 17th settlement against financial services companies in connection to alleged violations of various statutory provisions governing the mortgage finance industry.

metric is as high as we’ve seen in the survey’s seven-year history, it’s worth noting that this record is relative to the fairly tight standards in place post-crisis when we started collecting National Housing Survey data. Nevertheless, in the face of very tight housing supply, easing credit standards may fail to have the desired effect and could have the unintended consequence of fueling further house price increases.”

Loan Delinquencies Dip

Fannie Mae’s Housing Sentiment Index Ties Record High

The Fannie Mae Home Purchase Sentiment Index (HPSI) saw a 2.1 percent uptick in June to 88.3, matching its peak measurement from February of this year. On a year-over-year measurement, the HPSI saw a 5.1 percent increase.

Fannie Mae reported that the net share of Americans who believed it is a good time to buy a home was 30 percent in June, a three percent increase from May. The net percentage of those who say it is a good time to sell was up seven percent to 39 percent, which marked a new survey high for the second consecutive month. Furthermore, the net share of Americans who say that home prices will go up increased by six percentage points in June to 46 percent while the net share of those who say mortgage rates will go down over the next 12 months rose three percentage points to -49 percent. Fannie Mae polled 1,000 adults for this survey.

“The June HPSI reading matches the previous record set in February and reflects the trend toward a sellers’ market that respondents indicated last month,” said Doug Duncan, Senior Vice President and Chief Economist at Fannie Mae. “Consumers are also growing more optimistic about their ability to get a mortgage, and lenders expect credit standards to ease further going forward, as shown in our Mortgage Lender Sentiment Survey. While consumer optimism on this

Loan delinquency levels are mostly on the decline, according to new data released

by CoreLogic.

In an analysis of the national housing market during April, CoreLogic determined that 4.8 percent of mortgages were in some stage of delinquency. This is a 0.5 percent decline from the 5.3 percent level set in April 2016. The national foreclosure inventory rate in April was 0.7 percent, down 0.3 percent yearover-year, while the serious delinquency rate—defined as 90 days or more past due including loans in foreclosure—was two percent, down from 2.6 percent in one year earlier.

However, early-stage delinquencies, defined as 30-59 days past due, increased to 2.2 percent in April from two percent one year earlier. And the share of mortgages that were 60-89 days past due in April 2017 was 0.63 percent, down 0.01 percent year-overyear.

“Most major indicators of mortgage performance improved in April, showing that the market continues to benefit from improved economic growth and home price increases,” said Frank Nothaft, Chief Economist for CoreLogic.

“Regionally, with the exception of several energy industry intensive states—Alaska and North Dakota—the rest of the U.S. continues to see improvements in mortgage performance. While overall performance is improving, it continued on page 56

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By Jonathan Foxx

Human Resources Compliance

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ompliance Matters, presented by Lenders Compliance Group, airs every Friday at 7:00 a.m. Eastern on MortgageNewsNetwork.com.

Compliance Matters is brought to you by Mortgage News Network, and the program provides practical advice regarding current mortgage compliance topics. If you would like to contribute a question, please submit it to Compliance@LendersComplianceGr oup.com.

C

Question Our bank is undergoing an internal review of its Human Resources Department. I know you conduct such reviews and would like to know some of the primary regulations involving Human Resources compliance.

There are experts in this kind of compliance; however, they seem to be mostly interested in handling litigation issues, while we are looking for a way to draft policies and procedures. What are some important federal regulations involving Human Resources? What review issues should we consider in our policy statements?

Answer Human Resources (HR) compliance is a specialization that very few risk management firms offer.

Ours does! We even have a Human Resources Tune-up!

But the legal community tends to focus on the litigation arising from compliance failures involving human resources, rather than providing reasonably-priced, compliance reviews of the HR function.

Our firm actually has a director of Human Resources Compliance, an expert in the regulatory requirements of Human Resources.

We focus on guidance and reviews that seek to prevent litigation!

HR is the term that describes individuals who comprise the workforce of an organization.

Human Resources compliance is the term that applies to the department and functions within an organization, the administrative responsibility of which is charged with implementing strategies and policies relating to the management of individuals associated with the organization.

In many ways, HR compliance is a central feature of a financial institutionâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s overall compliance function. This is intuitively obvious, given that local, state and federal employment laws all play a role in

human resources. Indeed, HR must be familiar with an array of different statutory and regulatory authorities to effectively and lawfully deal with company personnel.

Here are just two of the many federal regulations that affect HR compliance. Local and state statutes should also be included in any HR policy statement. l

l

The Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) is a federal statute that applies to employees engaged in interstate commerce or employed by an enterprise engaged in commerce or in the production of goods for commerce (unless the employer can claim an exemption from coverage).

The National Labor Relations Act (NLRA), sometimes called the Wagner Act, which, as amended, is known as the Labor Management Relations Act (LMRA).

The foregoing regulations are but two of the vast array of regulations, at all levels of government, that involve HR. HR compliance takes into consideration virtually all work functions amongst an institutionâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s rank and file. For instance, HRâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s responsibilities in an institution include overseeing and managing duties related to hiring, firing, employee benefits, wages, paychecks and overtime.

A compliance review of the HR function should include how its many authorities extend to the oversight of workplace safety, privacy, preventing discrimination, prohibiting harassment, minimizing legal liability in the hiring and firing process, worker complaints, job protection, compensation, benefits, pensions, employee training and labor relations.

Jonathan Foxx, Ph.D., MBA, is the Managing Director of Lenders Compliance Group, the first and only full-service, mortgage risk management firm in the United States, specializing exclusively in outsourced mortgage compliance and offering a suite of services in residential mortgage banking for banks and non-banks. Information contained in this article is not intended to be and is not a source of legal advice. If you would like to contribute a question, please submit it to Compliance@LendersComplianceGroup.com.

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MICHAEL BORODINSKY Facebook: Facebook.com/MikeBorodinsky LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/MichaelNewHomeMortgage Twitter: @MikeBorodinsky Web site: MichaelNewHomeMortgage.com A graduate of the University of Delaware and nationallyrecognized 34-year mortgage industry professional, Michael Borodinsky has funded more than $4 billion in residential mortgage loans to 12,000-plus customers over the course of his career. He has been honored as the top producing loan officer at Bank of America, Wells Fargo, MetLife, Sun Home Loans and at Caliber. He has been awarded the 5 Star Professional Designation, which honors the best mortgage lending officers via customer service rankings for the past five years.

He has been ranked amongst the top originating loan officers nationwide for the past 15 years.

KEVIN BRUNGARDT LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/KevinBrungardt Kevin Brungardt serves as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of RoundPoint Mortgage Servicing Corporation.

He has more than 22 years of broad executive leadership experience.

MARC DEMETRIOU Facebook: Facebook.com/TheMortgageExperts Google+: Plus.Google.com/+MarcDemetriou Instagram: Instagram.com/MarcDemetriou LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/Marc-Demetriou-01989b1 Twitter: @MarcDemetriou1 Web site: RHFBloomingdale.com YouTube: YouTube.com/Channel/UC—0PI35jVFrIcEltpdxP7A Marc Demetriou has been the top producer every year since 2006 at Residential Home Funding Corporation, where he is the Branch Manager in Bloomingdale, N.J. Marc continues to be recognized nationally and locally for his loan origination volume, superior customer service and overall professional accomplishments. Marc was a

keynote speaker at the 2015 Real Estate Mastermind Summit, a wellknown event featuring world-renowned motivational speaker, Tony Robbins and CBS television’s Shark Tank co-star, Barbara Corcoran.

To add to his long list of accomplishments, Marc is now an author, his first book is due out this year, titled Lessons From My Grandfather; Wisdom for Success in Business and Life.

MATTHEW DEMOREST Facebook: Facebook.com/HomeSureLending LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/MattDemorest Twitter: @HomeSureLending Twitter: @MattDemorest Matthew Demorest founded HomeSure Lending in 2014, believing that mortgages should be both simple and fair.

He leverages his personal social network in order to grow his reach and help more clients purchase with confidence, and refinance with ease.

JASON FRAZIER Blog: Medium.com/@RealEstateCIO Facebook: Facebook.com/FrazierCIO Instagram: Instagram.com/RealEstateCIO LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/RealEstateCIO Snapchat: Snapchat.com/Add/RealEstateCIO Twitter: @RealEstateCIO Web site: RealEstateCIO.com Jason Frazier, aka The Real Estate CIO, is an C-Level industry strategist, CX Advisor, Social Media Evangelist, Speaker, Marketing Creative and Technologist. Frazier has a passion for advising real estate and mortgage professionals/companies on how to use the latest trends to stand out in a crowded real estate marketing space. His focus is using experience architecture to design programs using technology, content marketing and social media to enhance their business.

MICHAEL HAMMOND LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/MichaelHammond Twitter: @NexLevelAdvisor Web site: NexLevelAdvisors.com Michael Hammond, President of NexLevel Advisors, is responsible for overseeing the daily operations and longterm strategic vision of NexLevel Advisors, where they move audiences, generate leads, drive sales and ignite powerful brand stories for their clients. Hammond now dedicates himself exclusively to helping other businesses achieve extraordinary levels of success.

KELLY HANEY Facebook: Facebook.com/KellyTheMortgageGuy LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/KellyHaney Twitter: @Kelly_Mortgage Kelly Haney is a 17-year veteran of the mortgage business who has worked his way up from call center to management. He is very active in industry trade associations, having served as Immediate Past President of the North Texas Mortgage Professionals Association and Board Member of NAMB. He is also a member of the Texas Mortgage Bankers and Dallas Mortgage Bankers. Kelly’s goal is to provide true value-added service to partners in his community.

JAMES HOOPER LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/James-Hooper-53497210 Twitter: @JamesHooper07 Web site: PRMG.net James Hooper started his mortgage career at in 1998, and since then, he is helping to revolutionize the wholesale and correspondent mortgage industry with his forward thinking. As National Sales Manager for PRMG, James helps Account Executives do things differently in a market that is changing rapidly to help them create value

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MARCEL DEITRICH Facebook Business Page: Facebook.com/GuaranteedRateMarcel Facebook Personal Page: Ffacebook.com/MortgageTexas Intuitive Loan Finder: LoanFinder.GuaranteedRate.com/#/?LOID=13093 LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/Marcel-Deitrich-08ab001/ Marcel Deitrich has been an Originator since 1998, and changed his business model to adjust with technology and social media. Thirty percent of his business is directly generated off relationships and referrals off Facebook and LinkedIn. He leverages every transaction and success magnifying social proof to increase his business.

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KATRINA COLE Facebook: Facebook.com/Katrina.B.Alexander Facebook: Facebook.com/CompleteMarketer Business Facebook: Facebook.com/TheArnoldTeam LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/KatrinaBAlexander Twitter: @RealEstateHub Web site: MichiganHomeLoanSolutions.com Katrina Cole is the Business Development Manager for the Grand Rapids, Mich. office of Inlanta Mortgage Inc. She has been in the mortgage industry since 2002 earning numerous awards and accolades, focusing in all areas of the business. Katrina’s efforts enforce long-term initiatives that support brands to build lasting relationships with strategic partners and create lifelong clients. She strives to empower others to shape a strong business with superior communication by not focusing on what others are doing, but by what they are not doing.

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with Loan Officers across America. During his 20-year career, he has led sales teams that have funded more than $80 billion in loan production.

DAVID HOSTERMAN Facebook: Facebook.com/DHostermanCastleCookeMortgage Homes.com: Homes.com/Mortgage-Lenders/DavidHosterman/id-5713712 Lender411: Lender411.com/id/DHosterman LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/DavidHosterman Redfin: Redfin.com/Openbook/Home-Loans/Denver-DavidHosterman-sp378897 Trulia: Trulia.com/Mortgage-Lender-Profile/DaveHosterman Twitter: @CCMortgageLLC Web site: CastleCookeMortgage.com/Loan-Officer/DavidHosterman Zillow: Zillow.com/Lender-Profile/DaveHosterman David Hosterman contributes his success to the amazing support of Castle & Cooke Mortgage LLC at a corporate level and his team at the Denver, CO branch. David has been the top producer for Castle & Cooke Mortgage LLC in 2014, 2015, and 2016 and has been recognized as a top producer in the industry nationally. David hosts the following weekly radio shows on AM 1690 KDMT: 11:00 a.m. every Saturday (The Mile High Mortgage and Real Estate Report), and 10:00 a.m. every Sunday (The Rocky Mountain Real Estate Network).

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JOHN H.P. HUDSON Facebook: Facebook.com/MortgageYou Google+: Google.com/+JohnHPHudson Instagram: Instagram.com/JHPHudson LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/JohnHPHudson Twitter: @JHPHudson Web site: JoinMFS.com YouTube: YouTube.com/c/JohnHPHudson “My passion gives me power and I am blessed to work with some amazing folks that have helped make Mortgage Financial Services one of the fastest growing mortgage companies in the country,” said John H.P. Hudson.

As a #MortgagePro for 19 years, it’s John’s duty to help inspire, coach and mentor every #MortgagePro met to engage within their profession to help support every consumer possible fulfill their dreams of homeownership.

DOMINIC IANNITTI Blog: Blog.DocMagic.com LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/Dominic-Iannitti-2a405342 Personal Web site: DominicIannitti.com Twitter: @DocMagic YouTube: YouTube.com/User/DocMagicInc With more than 30 years of experience, Dominic Iannitti is a perennial mortgage technology innovator and wellknown leader in the industry. He constantly evangelizes the importance of leveraging mortgage technology to ensure that lenders operate efficiently, compliantly and cost-effectively.

SCOTT JUSTICE Facebook: Facebook.com/EdgeUser Instagram: Instagram.com/Inky_Scott/ LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/Scott-Justice-7b86491 Twitter: @RedsDjEdge Scott Justice started in the mortgage business in 1990 as a Collector, and has been in the industry ever since.

During this journey, he has been a Loan Officer, Processor, Branch Manager, Operations Manager, Regional Vice President for a top lender, Due Diligence Auditor, Front Line Underwriter and Direct Endorsement Underwriter. Scott also worked part-time for the Cincinnati Reds and Cincinnati Bengals for more than 20 years in scoreboard operations.

“The contacts I have made via social media are priceless,” said Scott. “Get out there and play ball!”

JP KELLY Blog: Blog.OpenClose.com Facebook: Facebook.com/OpenCloseSocial LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/JP-Kelly-4230b32 Twitter: @OpenCloseSocial JP Kelly is a long-time veteran of the industry who possesses a diversified background—owning both a fullservice mortgage bank and an enterprise-class mortgage technology software firm. He is a well-connected executive and constant innovator of contemporary, completely Web-based technology that helps lenders operate more efficiently.

GREG LUTIN Facebook: Facebook.com/Greg.Lutin Instagram: @glutin LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/Gregory-Lutin-ab914348 As the Senior Vice President, National Director of TPO Sales at ResMac, Greg Lutin leads a national wholesale and correspondent sales team, providing all aspects of sales development, including recruiting top talent, establishing key sales initiatives, and serving as the interface between sales and operations. Before joining ResMac in 2014, Greg spent 18 years with Flagstar Bank, where he held various positions ranging from Account Executive, Regional Sales Manager, Divisional Sales Manager, and EVP/Director of National Sales. Drawing on his many years of experience in mortgage technology, Greg works closely with the IT developers at ResMac, as they continue to develop a best-in-class technology platform. A big believer in community, Greg supports various charities on both local and national levels.

CARL MARKMAN Facebook: Facebook.com/CarlMarkman LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/Carl-Markman-b257439 Carl Markman began his career in the mortgage industry more than 24 years ago as a Loan Officer and quickly moved through the ranks to lead a significant team at one of the largest financial institutions in the industry. He now holds the title of Director of National Sales for one of the nation’s top mortgage lenders, REMN Wholesale.

ALLEN MIDDLEMAN LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/Allen-Middleman-b8433652 Allen Middleman, an Accredited Mortgage Professional and Senior Vice President at Freedom Mortgage Corporation, is an innovator, professional networker and widely recognized by his 17,000 LinkedIn followers. Allen has significantly impacted Freedom Mortgage Wholesale’s business processes and the sales success of their Account Executives and brokers through technology enhancements. His latest venture includes heading up the Wholesale Division’s InTouch sales team, a nationwide broker outreach group.

BUBBA MILLS Facebook: Facebook.com/CorcoranCoaching Instagram: Instagram.com/CorcoranCoaching LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/BuMills Twitter: @CorcoranCoach YouTube: YouTube.com/Channel/UCmcFtLYC2KiDp4HKTk3gDfg Bubba Mills is Owner and Chief Executive Officer of Corcoran Consulting & Coaching, whose clients are recognized as some of the most successful and influential professionals in their respective fields. Bubba has spent decades in the business world, crossing industry boundaries with the goal of transforming teams and revitalizing business culture by raising the bar on how you see your company, your clients, and the market around you.

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ERIC MITCHELL Facebook: Facebook.com/EricMitchell0513 Instagram: Instagram.com/EricTMitchell LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/EricTMitchell Twitter: @EricTMitchell Web site: Eric-Mitchell.com Eric Mitchell, Executive Vice President for Gold Star Mortgage, develops innovative purchase market strategies proven to revolutionize the way Loan Officers and Realtors partner, generating their unprecedented success and market reach. Using Gold Star’s awardwinning application technology, Eric creates highly sought after state-of-the-art lead generation platforms that have delivered sustainable growth for the thousands of sales professionals he has coached across North America. A Certified Master in Neuro Linguistic Programming, and industry-leader in Marketing and Business Development, Eric is a frequent presenter at national events.

ANDRES MUNAR Facebook: Facebook.com/AMunar727 Facebook: Facebook.com/MunarMortgage Instagram: Instagram.com/Mr.Munar LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/AMunar Twitter: @MunarMortgTeam Web site: KeystoneAllianceMortgage.com Zillow: Zillow.com/Lender-Profile/YourCentralPAMortgagePros Andres Munar is the Co-Founder of Keystone Alliance Mortgage. He is committed to serving his clients, referral partners, community and team members by being a servant leader. Social media is one of Andres’ favorite outlets to connect with friends, family, past/present and future clients. Andres believes you can have everything you want, if you just help other people get what they want.

KELLY LINDSAY ROGERS Facebook: Facebook.com/KellyRogersTeam Instagram: Instagram.com/KellyLindsayRogers LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/KellyLindsayRogers Web site: KellyRogersTeam.com As a dedicated leader in her field, Kelly Lindsay Rogers is one of the premier experts on mortgage lending in the Houston area. Together with her team, she successfully determines solutions for each of her clients’ financial needs.

They ensure a straight-forward and efficient approach to the mortgage process for all parties to the transaction.

SHASHANK SHEKHAR Blog: LendingExpertBlog.com Facebook: Facebook.com/ArcusLending LinkedIn: Linkedin.com/in/ThisIsShashank Twitter: @ShashankTweets YouTube: YouTube.com/ArcusLending Shashank Shekhar is one of the pioneers in using social media in the mortgage industry. By leveraging his blogs, he has built a massive following that has helped him with client acquisition, conversion and retention.

ADAM P. SMITH Facebook: Facebook.com/AdamPSmith Facebook: Facebook.com/ColoradoRealEstateFinanceGroup Instagram: Instagram.com/AwesomeMortgageGuy LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/TheAdamPSmith Twitter: @AdamPSmith1 Web site: CoreFinanceGroup.com Web site: AdamPaulSmith.com YouTube: YouTube.com/TheAdamPSmith Adam P. Smith is President and Founder of The Colorado Real Estate Finance Group, a commercial and residential real estate finance firm. He started the company in 2005, and during his career, has helped thousands of clients, both individuals and corporations, in their goals regarding real estate finance, as well as both personal and corporate finance and has personally written billions of dollars in mortgage and finance deals.

THOMAS SMITH Facebook: Facebook.com/Mortgagesandbs/?ref=aymt_homepage_panel LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/Thomas-Tom%E2%80%8B-smith-612386-7672-251b6aa Twitter: @Omsiguy With more than 30 years in the business Thomas Smith still gets excited about helping borrowers achieve their dreams, whether they are a first-time homebuyer or a seasoned veteran of buying homes. Thomas makes sure that the borrower is well-informed and well-educated about the entire mortgage loan process, something he feels is key to a successful loan.

JOHN STEVENS Facebook: Facebook.com/JohnGStevensUtah Facebook: Facebook.com/JohnGStevensNMLS512252/?fref=ts Google+: Plus.Google.com/+JohnGStevens Instagram: Instagram.com/JohnGStevens LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/JohnGlenStevens Pinterest: Pinterest.com/JohnGStevens Tumblr: JohnGlenStevens.Tumblr.com Twitter: @JohnGlenStevens YouTube: YouTube.com/Channel/UCZRVeBfo7aKAz2BjIV7O_Fw John Stevens is RPM Mortgage’s Growth VP and serves the mortgage industry as President-Elect of NAMB—The Association of Mortgage Professionals, connecting lenders with lawmakers online and in person to help all consumers safely achieve the American Dream of owning a home.

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NATHAN S. PIERCE Blog: NathanPierce.Social5.net Facebook: Facebook.com/NathanSPierce Facebook Business Page: Facebook.com/NathanSPierceAdvancedFunding Instagram: Instagram.com/NathanSPierce Twitter: @NathansPierce Web site: NathanPierce.com Nathan S. Pierce has been active in the mortgage industry since 1993 and is the Communications Committee Chairman and Board Member of NAMB—The Association of Mortgage Professionals, and President of NAMB+. He is also a Board Member of the Utah Association of Mortgage Professionals. He is a Certified Residential Mortgage Specialist (CRMS) and President of Advanced Funding Home Mortgage Loans in Salt Lake City, Utah. He was recently honored with the 2016 Mortgage Professional of the Year Award by the Utah Association of Mortgage Professionals (UAMP).

P R O F E S S I O N A L S

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ROBERT PADRON Facebook: Facebook.com/1stFinancialMiracleMile Instagram: Instagram.com/1stFinancialMiraclemile LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/RobPadron Web site: 1stFinancialInc.com Robert Padron is President of the Miami Chapter of the Florida Association of Mortgage Professionals and Branch Manager for 1st Financial Miracle Mile and 1st Financial Brickell.

M O R T G A G E

T H E

M O S T

C O N N E C T E D

M O R T G A G E

SCOTT STODDARD Facebook: Facebook.com/Quandis-Inc-278354345558367 LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/Scott-Stoddard-37092a4 Web site: Quandis.com/About/Recent-News Scott Stoddard is a recognizable figure in the mortgage industry, specifically in enterprise-level servicing technology. He was the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of LenStar, completing a successful acquisition to London Bridge where he then served as Group Executive.

He co-founded Quandis in 2003, and has since grown the company into one of the leading default management software firms in the mortgage industry.

ED STOJANCEVICH Blog: HomeTips.Blog Facebook: Facebook.com/TheRockstarCloser Instagram: Instagram.com/RockstarCloser LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/EdStojancevich Twitter: @HomeFinanceNWI Web site: TheRockstarCloser.com Web site: EShomeloans.com Ed Stojancevich has been in the mortgage industry for more than 10 years, and every year, finds the industry more exciting and innovative.

“I utilize social media to build my brand, build relationships and help my real estate partners grow their business,” said Stojancevich. “With my background in public relations, I focus on three main things: Consistently giving my clients amazing service, exceeding the expectations of my realtor partners, and constantly learning. My mission statement is very direct and precise: ‘I help people buy the home they want, with programs that destroy my competition and with service that is second to none.’”

JON TALLINGER LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/Jonathan-Tallinger-70624b2 Jon Tallinger is Vice President of Sales and Marketing at Class Appraisal, a Michigan-based nationwide appraisal management company. Jon has been in the appraisal business since 2002 when he started his career as a state-licensed appraiser in the state of Michigan.

P R O F E S S I O N A L S

GODWIN TSUI Facebook: Facebook.com/Gowintx Instagram: Instagram.com/Gowintx LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/GodwinTsui Twitter: @Gowintx Web site: GotWealth.com Having served his entire work life in the financial service industry, Godwin Tsui has a passion for helping people manage their finances.

“The mortgage is a very important part of any family’s financial composition and should be carefully managed and reviewed along with a comprehensive financial plan,” said Tsui.

CARL WHITE Facebook: Facebook.com/MortgageMarketingAnimals LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/MarketingAnimals Podcast: LoanOfficerFreedom.com Web site: MortgageMarketingAnimals.com Carl White’s podcast is the top podcast for loan officers in America, he has the largest Facebook Fan Page for LOs in all of Facebook, and has the most recommendations in LinkedIn of anybody in the entire mortgage industry, all while running one of the most successful mortgage marketing training programs in the U.S. for top-producing loan officers that teaches the strategies that loan officers in his own mortgage branch use today.

MARK WILKINS Facebook Business: Facebook.com/TheMortgageMark Facebook Personal: Facebook.com/MortgageMarkPA Instagram: Instagram.com/TheMortgageMark LinkedIn: LinkedIn.com/in/TheMortgageMark Twitter: @TheMortgageMark Mark Wilkins is a 10-plus year industry veteran serving as Meridian Bank’s Team Manager. Mark’s focus and engagement on local social media networks has paid dividends for his team and himself. He was voted “Best of Bucks 2017,” Top Mortgage Lender on the Bucks Happening List and is a seven consecutive year winner as a Five-Star Professional in Philadelphia Magazine.

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The Self-Driven Borrow W

By Carlos Sa

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hen we think of innovation, we generally think of the flashy stuff— things like artificial intelligence (AI), driverless cars, hoverboards and stem cell therapies. Recent news headlines are dominated by these inventions, a constant sign that technological change continues to accelerate. Yet we often forget that most innovation is incremental in nature. For example, it took cellphones 20 years to transform from a luxury item used only by wealthy people to a common business tool for busy professionals, and another 15 years after that for cellphones to find their ways into the back pockets of most Americans.

However, nowhere is technological change more incremental than in the mortgage industry. Very few innovations in our world are “game changers,” mostly because the Byzantine web of mortgage relationships, rules and guidelines make it practically impossible. And yet, we are seeing one innovation take shape that promises to reverse this trend and speed up closing times dramatically. It may just take a while to notice.

Faster closings begin with faster apps Borrower-driven mortgage tools are taking the mortgage industry by storm, and for good reason. A growing number of consumers want to create their own mortgage experience by researching loans and getting preapproved online before even speaking to a salesperson. These self-driven borrower Web sites, sometimes referred to as “borrower portals,” are already speeding up the time in which a complete application is created, which obligates the lender to render a credit decision. In fact, this process no longer requires the involvement of a loan officer– even though one may be required in certain situations.

Also accelerating the application process is the Fannie

Mae “Day One” Certainty Initiative, which enables lenders to reach an underwriting decision based on the ability to verify a borrower’s documents and data immediately after submitting a complete mortgage application.

But the best part about these innovations is not just speed, but cost. The mortgage application process is typically the most expensive part of the transaction, because it usually involves loan officers, loan processors and loan assistants collecting and hunting down a borrower’s documents.

Leaning on technology to handle the bulk of the workload is inherently less expensive.

Right now, however, there is not enough consistency in the mortgage application process to deliver an immediate underwriting decision on every loan. Even with borrower portals, certain applications are more complete than others, which influences the app-to-close time. An application may be “complete” in the sense that all six required elements are filled in, but certain ones still need to be verified. The application may be sent to underwriting, but because it is missing certain information or because information needs to be reverified, it is usually sent back to the processor and then back to the borrower.

Our goal—and the industry’s goal as well—is to eliminate this second part of the process, so that when all applications go to underwriting, the underwriter can render a yes or no decision and send it back to the borrower right away. And yet, there are additional obstacles standing the way.

Some loans will still close faster than others Beyond the manual challenges of putting together a complete application and securing an underwriting decision, how fast a loan closes often depends on a host of additional factors, regardless of whether the borrower begins the process online. For example, some loan products allow lenders to sign the

application and additional paperwork electronically, others do not. Closing times are also impacted by the number and types of documents needed based on a particular loan product, or the loan guidelines, or the borrower’s characteristics.

For instance, a borrower could be asked for a copy of his or her green card, or a gift letter from a family member, which can extend the application and underwriting processes.

Another factor holding back faster app to closing periods is the fact that not everything about a borrower can be automatically and immediately verified. Credit and assets can be, but tax transcripts and verification of employment are not so easily accessible. However, things are improving. My company, for example, is collecting more documents electronically. And we’re doing so without having to ask the borrower, because we’ve put the system in charge of the process.

For example, a borrower can go to our Web site and find out what documents are required to complete their loan file, and then they are able to submit these documents electronically, either by e-mail or uploading them directly to the site. There are literally hundreds of possible requests for additional information, but the system is able to keep track of them all, and it’s the system that asks the borrower, not a human. When we delegate these document collection activities to technology, it will eventually reduce costs and speed up app to close periods.

Five years from now, I think borrowers will get an online decision in minutes for the majority of loans, and we will see a significant decrease in average closing times. But the change will be gradual. Right now, equity lines of credit receive the fastest underwriting decisions and are the most likely to achieve an immediate decision. Refinances will be next, followed by full purchase loans. With the speed

at which these do-it-yourself borrower tools are being adopted, I believe we’ll start to see significant improvement in the app-to-close period for certain products and borrowers by next year.

Incidentally, the same types of innovations being developed that will speed up closing times are leading to other exciting developments. Borrowers have greater access to their financial information than ever before.

Someday, every borrower will be able to store and have access to all of their financial information, precompiled in a central repository.

When applying for a loan, the borrower will be able to provide a Social Security Number and the lender will be able to access all the key data points about the borrower’s financial life—assets, income, credit, everything. Likewise, borrowers will be able to review their financial profiles the same way they are currently able to review their credit reports. The data will be centralized, and the consumer and anyone the consumer gives permission to will be to know the consumer’s net worth, how liquid they are, and how much money they have for a downpayment.

While it may seem a little frustrating to not see immediate results, change in the mortgage industry must be incremental in order to be successful. The changes my company makes are intentionally gradual, as it’s extraordinarily difficult to create new processes at the flip of a switch. Yet incremental innovation happens in other industries, too. It wasn’t too long ago that cell phones started coming with cameras, then video cameras, then color screens, then apps. Now you

wer and Faster Closings can use your phone to simultaneously watch Game of Thrones and pay for your Frappuccino.

It’s not unfathomable that today’s self-driven borrower tools will eventually evolve into an entirely electronic mortgage experience, and we will see days or even weeks shaved off the mortgage transaction. As

an innovation, that may not sound as exciting as riding a hoverboard to work, or as stunning as a cure for cancer.

But it will save time and money and make the mortgage process easier and more efficient, and that’s still pretty cool.

Carlos Sa is the Head of Information Technology for Danvers, Mass.-based Mortgage Network Inc., one of the largest independent mortgage lenders in the eastern United States. He can be reached by e-mail at CSa@MortgageNetwork.com.

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By Andrew Liput

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he mortgage closing transaction is the single largest financial transaction in the lives of most consumers, and it is also the riskiest stage of the mortgage process for lenders. While the vast majority of lawyers and notaries and title agents are experienced, ethical and diligent professionals, for a few the role of closing agent is too tempting a lure for selfish criminal intent. This column addresses the good, the bad and the ugly!

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A New York Judge was arrested and charged with several counts for fraud as well as obstruction of justice arising from a mortgage loan on a second home that was required to maintain a residency requirement, but

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Two Texas men were convicted of wire fraud and other charges for stealing downpayment proceeds intended for mortgage transactions but diverted to their personal use, including trips to Las Vegas and expensive gifts.

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A Pennsylvania real estate agent recently pled guilty to wire fraud for stealing more than $750,000 intended for real estate transactions but diverted to his personal use.

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A Tennessee investor pled guilty to making false statements on the loan closing documents by failing to disclose to the lenders on HUD-1 Settlement Statements that he was kicking back a portion of the loan proceeds to borrowers.

The scheme caused the lenders to disburse approximately $635,000 in loan proceeds.

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A mortgage loan officer in Florida conspired in a scheme to defraud Chase Bank by completing, certifying and submitting mortgage loan applications on behalf of borrowers that contained false and fraudulent statements. The false statements included overinflated income and assets, understated liabilities, and false occupancy. Chase allegedly continued on page 80

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You canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t make this stuff up!

This month, we feature some of the latest news about mortgage and closing fraud affecting our industry. These are real cases from around the country, only the names have been redacted to avoid threats of frivolous legal action â&#x20AC;Ś

where the judge never actually resided. A fake lease and rent checks have landed the judge in judicial and legal hot water.

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Top industry news â&#x20AC;Ś CFPB still in crosshairs of Trump Administration Several years ago, right after the financial crisis, in order to gain passage of the Dodd-Frank Act and its regulator and enforcement creature the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), Congress promised the CFPB would be a professional law-enforcement tool to prevent banks from defrauding consumers through deceptive marketing and impossible loan programs and documents.

The CFPB evolved into a super-regulator run by one Director, with no Congressional oversight, and funded (i.e. controlled) through the Federal Reserve rather than with congressionally-appropriated taxpayer dollars. While the goal may have been to establish independence from political manipulation, Republicans have long felt that the Bureau was anything but as it essentially froze them out of any influence whatsoever.

As it has grown in power, the cries against the CFPB and Director Cordray, an Obama appointment, have only grown louder. President Trump signaled an interest in doing away with the CFPB altogether, but without help from the Supreme Court following the PHH decision, he has been unable to single-handedly demolish it. Yet efforts remain underway to roll back some of the regulatory constraints that lenders have felt has inhibited business growth (and easier loan originations and sales).

Current thinking in D.C. supports the proposition of the CFPB remaining in place, however, with some Congressional oversight, a bipartisan governing board instead of a single Director, and with a less expansive investigative reach.

Eliminating or severely curtailing consumer protection rules are unlikely to go away as the memories of the last mortgage meltdown are still too fresh in the minds of many politicians and voters.

Delegate!

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By Andy W. Harris, CRMS

ver the years, I must admit that delegation has been one of my biggest challenges.

Being a control freak and making sure all things are done to my specifications can make delegating tasks an uphill goal.

I will say, however, that with time and success, I’ve been able to delegate more over the years. I find that delegating the right tasks and making a plan around delegating is the most important part of building a team.

As residential mortgage loan originators (MLOs), I believe our time should be primarily spent with our clients and on prospecting for new clients. I don’t personally believe in communication delegation, but in delegating as much as possible outside of communication once the loan process begins. By doing this, I believe you can create great systems with your team that allow you to spend more time prospecting and you are able to build a better relationship with

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the client over the loan process.

A few benefits in letting go: l

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It may open up a better way of doing business and operating your systems.

It can build morale by responsibility and motivate employees or team members.

It builds creativity and stimulates initiative.

It frees up more time for planning, organizing and brainstorming.

It helps develop and manage team members.

It allows others to build skills and contribute to overall team success.

The list goes on. Letting go can certainly provide freedom for you and even those you choose to delegate to. It provides clear purpose and roles for all team members and allows for a smoother process and greater client experience.

Just keep yourself as the main point of contact to the consumer. I believe you will find this more rewarding for

you and your clients long-term, no matter what others try to do.

What are your thoughts and what has worked for you?

Are you an originator? Send your stories! To have topics considered in future editions, please e-mail me with

“OrigiNation” in the Subject Line at AHarris@VantageMortgageGroup.com. These can be confidential or your name and company can be referenced if you wish. You can also join the Facebook group by searching for “OrigiNation.”

Andy W. Harris, CRMS is president and owner of Lake Oswego, Ore.-based Vantage Mortgage Group Inc. and past president of the Oregon Association of Mortgage Professionals. He may be reached by phone at (877) 4960431, e-mail AHarris@VantageMortgageGroup.com or visit VantageMortgageGroup.com.

A division of New York Community Bank A National Leader in Wholesale and Correspondent Solutions

Take Control and Unleash Your Potential.

At NYCB, we create empowering technology that puts you in control

Ready to take control? Visit us at www.nycbmortgage.com or Email potentialclient@mynycb.com to learn more.

This information is for use by current and prospective Clients of New York Community Bank, doing business as NYCB Mortgage Banking, and should not be distributed to or used by consumers or other third parties. Š2017 New York Community Bank â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Member FDIC. All Rights Reserved.

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NYCB serves correspondent lenders, brokers, community banks and credit unions throughout the nation with a team of highly experienced sales and service professionals, superior underwriting and a comprehensive product menu.

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and convenient service experience that your borrowers and referral sources will love. All this, while transacting with more simplicity, speed and risk mitigation.

heard street on the

Our Heard on the Street column is a chronicle of events, changes and passages in the lives of the people and companies shaping the mortgage industry.

UWM to Move Into Expanded State-of-the-Art Headquarters

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United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM) has announced that it will move its corporate headquarters in the summer of 2018. The company will be moving to nearby Pontiac, Mich., a location in the greater Detroit area that will provide the lender with more than double the office space at 600,000-square feet and nearly 60 acres of campus.

“The wholesale channel is growing at an explosive rate and our clients are growing at an even faster clip,” said Mat Ishbia, President/CEO of UWM. “This move will allow us to keep pace, expand our operations and continue to deliver the great service and industry-leading turn times that our clients have come to expect.”

The new headquarters will enable UWM to further enhance its service to mortgage brokers throughout the country as it continues to rapidly grow its workforce and expand its operations. All team members will continue to work out of a single location.

“The new headquarters will create a more dynamic and collaborative work environment to maximize our team members’ performance, all under one roof and one campus,” Ishbia said.

“We will be able to grow our team considerably, adding key depth in operations and technology that will allow us to further our industry-leading technology and service initiatives.”

The new headquarters and campus will provide a number of physical amenities for UWM, including: A Primary Care doctor’s office; Starbucks with indoor/outdoor cafe, wired with Wi-Fi; full-length indoor basketball court; large fitness center with full-sized locker rooms; massage rooms and fulltime massage therapist; bicyclesharing program with bike and jogging paths within the campus; outdoor volleyball court; indoor/outdoor putting greens; full-service food court; outdoor dining patio; convenience store; dry cleaning services; game room, featuring arcade games, pool and ping-pong; a 1,000person auditorium; outdoor sunken amphitheater; innovation lab; collaboration spaces throughout; dance floor with DJ booth; Escape Room for training; production studio for filming, recording and editing; and a 3,500-spot parking lot.

Since 2010, the company’s team member count has increased five times, going from 400 to 2,100. In 2016, UWM set a company record with $23 billion in loan volume and over 11 percent of wholesale market share, and is on pace to surpass $30 billion in 2017.

UWM has won a Stevie Award as the Client Service Department of the Year for two years in a row. Through the first six months of 2017, UWM elevated its external net promoter score (NPS)–an indicator of clients’ likelihood to refer their services to others–to 79 percent, ranking UWM among top service

providers in the country across all industries.

New American Funding Recognized as a Top Millennial Workplace

Fortune and Great Place to Work have ranked New American Funding as one of the best workplaces in the nation for Millennials. The Southern California-based lender ranked 46th on the third annual list of 100 companies, which included a broad spectrum of industries, ranging from technology to healthcare, and banking.

The global research and consulting firm, Great Place to Work, complied the list by gathering feedback from more than 398,000 employees from Great Place to Work-Certified companies. The firm anonymously surveyed employees who assessed their organizations based on fairness, teamwork, benefits and other elements essential to an outstanding work culture.

“We’re excited that Millennials love working at New American Funding. We strive to maintain a fun, friendly environment that our employees look forward to coming to each day,” said Katie Traviglia, HR Director for New American Funding. “We make it our job to put them first. Whether we’re developing fun Friday events, spirit week activities, or team-building exercises, we’re constantly thinking of ways to make our company the best

employee workplace!”

New American Funding has created a culture where Millennials can succeed by designing opportunities for younger employees to move ahead through an initiative known as, “If you want to grow, we want to know.” The mortgage lender is also building a state-ofthe-art training lab to support employee professional development. Due to this progressive environment, the company has attracted a diverse, inclusive workforce that has rapidly expanded into nearly 2,400 employees, among which 34 percent are Millennials.

DocMagic Announces UCD Delivery Preparedness

DocMagic has announced that its technologies are now capable of supporting both phases of the upcoming UCD (Uniform Closing Dataset) requirement. The company’s technology solutions, which have been certified by Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac for both phases of the UCD file delivery mandate, enable lenders to start immediate testing of full UCD delivery—well in advance of the phase one 2017 deadline and the phase two 2018 deadline—as has been recommended by both GSEs. The Uniform Closing Dataset (UCD) is a common industry dataset that allows information on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s (CFPB’s) Closing Disclosure to be communicated electronically.

On Sept. 25, 2017, the GSEs will require lenders to deliver borrower data and the Closing

Disclosure in the UCD file. Later, in 2018, the second phase of the mandate will require seller data to be included as well. However, according to a joint statement issued by the GSEs, both Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are recommending that lenders start to “submit files with both Borrower and Seller data, if available, in order to test their processes and become familiar with the messaging from each GSE’s collection system.”

DocMagic’s technology solutions allow lenders to fulfill the GSEs’ recommendation by generating and compliantly delivering UCD files that include both borrower and seller data to the GSEs. DocMagic can also accept UCD XML data from third parties and deliver it to the GSEs. In addition, the company offers an API for direct, seamless connection to the GSEs’ technologies.

“Our customers and partners rely on us to do everything we can to assure they transact the safest, most compliant loans— and helping them prepare for a major new mandate like the UCD requirement is no different,” said Dominic Iannitti, CEO of DocMagic. “Lenders, settlement providers and other organizations must prepare now or run the precarious risk of being unable to sell their loans. DocMagic is proud to be leading the way, yet again, to help them avert these costly risks.”

opportunity to add the quality assets, platform and select employees which are part of New York Community Bank to our Freedom family,” said Middleman.

“I think there will be a great future for both firms as a result of this transaction.”

VA Department Signs 10-Year Services Contract With VRM

Vendor Resource Management Inc. (VRM) has announced that continued on page 86

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Freedom Mortgage has maintained its position as the top VA mortgage lender in the first quarter of 2017, originating $2.7 billion in VA mortgage loans in the first quarter of 2017, representing a market share of 6.2 percent, according to Inside FHA/VA Lending. Refinancing accounted for more than 75 percent of Freedom Mortgage’s VA originations in the quarter.

Market conditions negatively impacted VA volume for lenders nationwide. Lenders closed an aggregate $42.9 billion of VA loans in the first quarter, down 28.1 percent from the fourth quarter of 2016. Eight of the top VA lenders saw large declines in their VA lending, with refinances accounting for just 27.7 percent of total VA production in the first quarter.

Community Bank’s (NYCB) mortgage banking operation. The deal includes the right to service $20 billion-plus in residential mortgage loans, as well as the loans in the warehouse at closing.

The servicing portfolio includes Fannie Mae- and Freddie Macapproved mortgage loans, as well as a small amount of Ginnie Maeinsured mortgages. Freedom Mortgage also expects to hire select employees in originations, servicing and operations from New York Community Bank’s Cleveland-based residential mortgage operation.

“I am delighted to have the

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Freedom Mortgage Rides VA Wave for Strong Q1, Acquires Residential Mortgage Assets From NYCB

“We were able to react quickly to rising interest rates and maintain our position in the industry.

Freedom Mortgage is honored to be one of the nation’s top VA lenders,” said Stanley Middleman, president and CEO of Freedom Mortgage. “We continue to offer our nation’s veterans favorable terms, low down payments and great service, whether they want to buy a new home, refinance or explore a cash out with an existing mortgage.”

Freedom Mortgage has also agreed to buy approximately $500 million of selected residential mortgage assets from New York

o you hate clients who call you and waste your time ?

Of course you do, we all do. But you have to stop and think about who you have invited to call you and the process they go through before you actually speak with them.

Yesterday, I got a call from Zillow about a new program they are offering loan officers around the country. To their credit, this was a well-thought-out process.

The program takes buyers from the Web site through a process where they are asked a series of questions and then turned over to a loan officer. Then, you must call them back immediately.

Now stop and think about that for a minute.

What position are you in when you must call them back immediately? Do you go to a doctor or a lawyer? Do you have a dentist ? Do you have an accountant? Do they call you back immediately?

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The difference between a head of lettuce and an expert The Zillow rep explained this process to me and I politely declined. She seemed totally stunned as if someone had just kicked her in the stomach. She went on to explain the entire 15 steps in the process a buyer now must go through and all of the information they must provide.

At this point, I could not get a word in anyway, so I let her continue trying to sell me. After another two attempts at closing me (I have to give her credit for trying) and another 10 minutes of explaining, I once again said so.

I explained all of our frustrations to her.

1. We hate rate shoppers.

2. We hate working with buyers who we spend a lot of time with and then don’t qualify.

3. We hate being seen as a head of lettuce.

4. We hate having our down time or family time interrupted with only a 10 percent chance of actually getting a client.

Finally, I told her how I felt and then she literally hung up on me.

Since I knew she would never sell me, I finally told her, “Look, I’ll tell you what we can do. If you want to pay me $100 per lead, I will take them with a max of five per day?”

Her response was priceless and just one word, “Huh?”

So I told her again that I would be willing to take up to five leads per day that went through her 15-step process, but that she would need to deposit $100 for each lead into my account before I called them back.

The response on the other end of the phone was priceless.

There was total silence for about 30 seconds and then all I heard was “CLICK”!

How buyers get to you is very important How a buyer gets to you is crucial to your success. The truth is that you are either chasing business or using techniques I have perfected and share to get business chasing

with average sales prices of $250,000, you will want buyers renting for $1,500$2,000 a month. Why? You know they are renting and you know that they can afford the payments. You know a mortgage might be lower than their rent. l Let them hear your sales message: Why they should work with you and educate them through an automated process. l Encourage them to call you for a free consultation.

This is the formula I have laid out and provided all the steps for in my RentersIntoLoans.com System.

anyone cover this for our industry specifically, but the bottom line is that you must learn persuasion and manipulation techniques. Now I know what you are thinking.

These are bad words right?

Well nothing could be further from the truth. Each and every day you are either being persuaded and manipulated, or you are manipulating and persuading others. Truthfully that is what we all do for a living when you take a minute to stop and think about it. You are trying to generate new business. You are trying to get referrals. You are preapproving buyers and hoping

Why the Zillow Hun you. When you are chasing business, you are begging and showing little value. You appear just like a head of lettuce in a supermarket or a razor blade in a convenience store.

When you are getting business chasing you, it’s because you are seen as an expert and an authority. Buyers become less rate-sensitive and you hold much higher value in their eyes.

Which would you rather be?

Yes I know that is a silly question but stop and think about the ways you currently try to generate new business. Are you chasing or attracting? I want buyers sold on using me before they even meet me and I am sure you do too. If you don’t like the buyers or referral partners you work with … it is your fault.

There are three critical pieces to this puzzle: Step 1: Get to the buyers first so your income is in your control Here is a formula: l Target the best people you want to work with. So for example if you are in an area

Step 2: Become the expert in a niche You can become an instant celebrity using this simple formula: l Pick a niche l Become the expert l Let everyone know about your expertise The biggest niche in our market currently are the 7.3 million Boomerang Buyers who are now eligible to buy a home. I have put together a comprehensive training on this topic at BoomerangExpert.com/nowv2.

Step 3: Understand and learn all you can about persuasion and manipulation I honestly have never seen

they use you. You are working on files and trying to get your processor to do their jobs. You are convincing underwriters to approve your loans. You are convincing closing agents to get their jobs done on time and accurately. None of this takes into account your personal live and all of the persuasion and manipulation that goes on there each and every day.

Since I believe this does give LOs an unfair edge, I have put my best tactics and samples together at LOUnfairEdge.com/1-2.

The bottom line … you are either being chased or you are doing the chasing. You must decide which business model works best for you?

Brian Sacks is a nationally-renowned mortgage expert who has career closing of more than 5,924 transactions for more than $1 billion. He has trained, consulted and coached tens of thousands of loan officers and company owners over the past 31 years on how to close more loans, make more money, and still have a life. Brian is the host of “Top Originator Secrets,” which can be seen weekly on Mortgage News Network and on his blog. You can get more information and grab your free report on “How to Get Agents Chasing You” at TopOriginatorSecrets.com.

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By Brian Sacks

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Lykken on Leadership

Eight Ways to Inspire Your Employees in Their Work

BY DAVID LYKKEN

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henever I first meet with leaders in the mortgage industry to discuss how they might go about improving their organizations, I always cover two topics: The effectiveness of their business processes, and how they recruit, train and develop their employees. Now, in the mortgage industry, leaders tend to do pretty well talking about processes. The nature of the work can be fairly regimented and systematic in our industry, so process management seems perfectly natural. Relationships with employees, however, can be a different story.

I often hear from leaders that one of the most difficult things for them to do is to figure out how to motivate the people on their team. Because the nature of the work in the mortgage industry can be so structured, it can be difficult for people working within it to actually get excited about the work. So, I’m often asked for ideas about some things that can be done inspire people in their work. In this article, I would like to offer some suggestions. Some will be fairly standard, and others will be a little unorthodox. But feel free to take what works for you to help develop the employees

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“Because the nature of the work in the mortgage industry can be so structured, it can be difficult for people working within it to actually get excited about the work.” within your own organizations.

1. Involvement with charities People like to feel like their work matters—like they’re contributing to something bigger than themselves. One way to do this is to incorporate some kind of charitable giving or community service into the work. When you provide opportunities for people to give back in some way, they tend to feel more positive about the work their doing. Whether or not they’re interested in the work itself, they’ll find solace in the fact that doing it helps to make the world a better place through the work your organization is doing for the community.

2. Friendly competitions The mortgage industry attracts competitive people. As a leader, you can take advantage of that! Many in the industry are motivated by the competitive nature of the business, so you could start competitions for getting more origination or for reaching other

key metrics. For many, work is like a game. It’s a sport. The thrill of fighting for the victory is part of what makes it meaningful. Are you giving the competitive spirit in your organization room to thrive?

Give your people opportunities to compete, and you may be pleasantly surprised by the results.

3. A solid career path Do you know why most people leave an organization? It isn’t because they don’t like the company, the people or the work. Even if all those things are just fine, people will still leave a company if they feel like they’ve reached a ceiling. If there’s no longer an opportunity to advance their careers, people will start looking elsewhere ... or, worse, they will become complacent in the work they’re doing. If you want people to work hard, you’ve got to give them a clear direction as to where that hard work can lead. Do your people know where they can go in your organization? Can they move up? If they can’t, you might want to change that. Because, if

people can’t move up, they will either move out or decide to just not move at all!

4. Basic bonuses Like a competition, bonuses can motivate people to work harder in order to reach a goal.

While not everyone may be competitive in nature, most of us do like being rewarded for our efforts. In addition to standard salaries, people deserve to be compensated for going above and beyond.

Regardless of the role they play in your organization, everyone can exceed expectations in a key performance indicator.

Give them something they can get from the extra effort, and you might just get it.

5. Flexible schedules One creative way to inspire your employees in their work is to give them freedom as to when and how they choose to do it. In my experience, leaders are more reluctant to offer a flexible work schedule than almost anything. We want to keep tabs on our people, and we’re worried about them

shirking. But, basically, that means we don’t trust them. If you don’t have people on your team you can trust, you’ve got a whole other problem. Giving people options in their schedule enables them to love their work more, because they can do it on their own terms. This can be done in any number of ways: Allowing them to work from home part of the time, allowing them to come in later or leave earlier, allowing them to work longer days in exchange for fewer days, or offering “summer hours.” Be creative, and look to your people for suggestions.

People value their time more than almost anything. Show them that you value their time too, and they’ll want to work even harder to keep the organization going that has given them so much freedom.

7. Random gifts There is something to be said for giving people gifts, not as incentives to reach a goal but just to let them know you care.

Sometimes, you dangle a carrot in order to motivate behavior.

Other times you offer a carrot just because you know people like carrots. You can give your employees gifts on holidays, birthdays, or on random occasions. Try it out: Get some gift cards or something and start surprising your people with these gifts. The point of giving gifts is that you’re letting your people know you care about them and the work they do, irrespective of whether they’re reaching their goals. People need to know that you’re valuing their efforts, not just the results. So, try being a giver.

David Lykken, a 43-year veteran of the mortgage industry, is president of Transformational Mortgage Solutions (TMS), a management consulting firm that provides transformative business strategies to owners and “C-Level” executives via consulting, executive coaching and various communications strategies. He is a frequent guest on FOX Business News and hosts his own weekly podcast called “Lykken on Lending” heard Monday’s at 1:00 p.m. ET at LykkenOnLending.com. David’s phone number is (512) 759-0999 and his e-mail is David@TMS-Advisors.com.

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8. The latest technology One last simple way to motivate employees in their work is to make it easier to do. I’ve heard a lot of employees in the industry express frustration that they’re expected to do things when they aren’t adequately equipped to do them. Some organizations work with antiquated technology and yet expect their workers to get the same results of organizations using the best, most up-to-date technology. If you want a simple way to motivate your employees to take pleasure in their work, give them the tools they need to do it better. Invest in technology that makes it easier to do, and I guarantee you’ll get your investment back multiple times over in the efforts your employees put into the work.

NationalMortgageProfessional.com

6. Celebrating achievements Who doesn’t like a good party?

In addition to competitions and basic bonuses for individuals reaching milestones, there is something to be said for rewarding the entire group for their efforts. When the organization or a particular department reaches a major goal, do you celebrate the accomplishments of the entire group? The benefit of doing so is twofold. First, it’s another incentive for people to work toward a goal. If they know they’ll get a fun celebration at the end if they hit their goals, they will work harder to reach them—just like they do in competitions or to reach bonuses. But, with group parities, you have the added benefit of employees building camaraderie. Because the celebration is a group-based reward, people further develop their social bonds in the activity. This can be excellent for your corporate culture.

When people have the sense of “we’re in this together,” they’ll work even harder to make it a success because they’ll feel that the success of their friends is on the line as well.

You’re can’t get over what a terrible job most of you are doing. What you are doing every day is not good for the public or your referral sources, especially real estate agents. And those of you who service mortgage loan officers: PMI companies, wholesalers, title companies, and so many more are doing your job poorly.

For the most part, I coach people in the mortgage industry, but I also coach or have coached doctors, golf pros, title reps, automobile salespeople and more. But the ones who disappoint me the most are those senior managers, sales managers and their salespeople. Coaching is about empathy, caring, psychology, philosophy, encouragement, helping people think and offering ideas.

What causes my disappointment, even anger?

It’s so simple: What all of you do is exactly the same thing we were taught to do in the 60s and 70s. That should embarrass every one of you.

And I have not even sensed a scintilla of information that any of you intend to do anything other than what you’re doing.

Why would you take advice that the best thing for you to do is call every one of the real estate agents you know every Monday morning and see if they have any clients to refer to you? That’s just silly, and if I was to be more correct, stupid!

Call them to see if they will have coffee with you? How dumb! Oh! I know, you want to talk to them about your new programs, your new rates, what you can do to show them how great your service is or how good your company is when compared to the company you used to work for … beyond dumb!

In a recent discussion with one of my new clients, Brian, a producing manager in the

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The

Mortgage

Godfather

e All Wrong ... and Here’s Why!

BY RALPH LOVUOLO SR.

service” to it. These are NOT what you should be selling. First of all, every one of you sell the same thing. THAT IS JUST SILLY!. But you fear change and so you listen to the old voices that have never put one once of energy into a new thought process.

You should be helping your

referral sources do better.

Whether you are PMI reps or wholesale reps who solicit MLOs or MLOs who try to get business from real estate agents, it all flows downhill: Wholesalers and their ilk should be partnering with their referral sources to help their referral sources.

Ralph LoVuolo Sr. has more than 50 years in the mortgage Industry, with the last 30 as a coach. He is Past President and Founder of the New York Association of Mortgage Brokers, and long-time member of NAMB— The Association of Mortgage Professionals. He can be reached by phone at (917) 576-1230 or e-mail Ralph@MortgageGodfather.com.

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idea to start to talk about something other than rates, points, programs, service and competition. I saw that if MLOs could help real estate agents do their job better and become more efficient, the agents would appreciate it to some extent, and would rather talk about how to make money. It was the creation of win-winwin. How could anyone argue with that? Boy was I naïve. So many non-clients continued to do what they were used to do that my coaching philosophy was put to the sideline. But not one to give up easily, I’ve been given a new audience, a rebirth of sorts that allows me to preach the message of the Gospel According to Ralph.

Look, why do you not allow your people learn new ways to sell? Why do you teach your people to do what they do?

Why haven’t you looked for a new way of making an impact with real estate agents? I know why … it’s about money. It’s always about money. It’s the real reason and the real cause.

You don’t want to listen to me.

Is there a danger that I’m being preachy? Not at all! I’m so far into a progressive plan of action that you just don’t want to hear it. You don’t want to change and look at the cost to change. Well the public is losing, the realtors are losing, the MLO’s are losing and the wholesalers are too. You would all be so much more effective if you’d just see what I see … it’s so simple … E= MC2.

You should teach win-winwin. Stop trying to convince people that your way is the only way. It’s wrong and has always been wrong. A very long time ago, my first and best sales manager and president of our company, Bill Schor told me countless times “If you sell rate, you will fail” I listened and succeeded beyond my expectations. Now I relay that thought to my clients and add the concept of “great

NationalMortgageProfessional.com

mortgage business, where I am tasked to help him “do more business,” he said, “Wait Ralph! I want to tell you what you just said to me and then I want to talk about it more. You just said, ‘If you want to do large volumes of business, you need to help large numbers of people who actually do business to do more business.’

Right?”

“Yes, Brian, that is exactly what I said,” I replied.

“So, as we’ve discussed before, I need to tell my salespeople to stop talking about rates, points, programs, service and competition,” Brian said.

“Yes, Brian, that is exactly what I’m saying,” I replied.

Let’s explore these words and the philosophy behind them. Let’s find out where this all came from and let’s find out if it’s correct or just nonsensical. Let’s be sure that what I posit here is a serious lack of attention and caring about the public, the actual people who would be better served by a change in activities of everyone connected to real estate sales and the financing required to effectuate those transactions.

The people I’m directing my attention to are those in positions of responsibility, plus those who are connected to the public.

During the 90s when real estate agents were just beginning to use their computer, I asked my clients to learn everything they could about the program “Outlook” and how it could be used to the best advantage of real estate agents. I saw and envisioned that there was an inexpensive and efficient way that agents could stay in touch with their clients and also to market their services to past clients to secure referrals. Real estate agents were slow on the uptake on the issue at hand. I thought it would be a good

Are Reverse Mortgag Out of Reach for Properties With PACE Loans?

By Gino Moro

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roperty Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) loans allow homeowners to finance a long list energyefficient home improvements such as solar panels, windows and doors. The new debt is repaid by a property assessment that is added to the homeowner’s property tax bill for up to 25 years.

We are starting to see more and more seniors with these PACE loan assessments tacked on to their property tax bills. In many cases, the new total payment is almost double the amount of the original property taxes.

Here are some real numbers from the most recent one I’ve seen in Miami. A property valued at $134,300 that originally had a

P

$2,705.80 property tax bill now has a $5,196.46 payment requirement for the next 20 years. Another valued at $129,700 went from $2,650.14 to a whopping $5,180.46. The interest rate on both loans is in the high seven percent range and the total payments over 20 years amount to double the amount which was originally borrowed to pay for the energyefficient improvements.

To qualify for a reverse mortgage, a borrower must pass a financial assessment. Income and credit payment history are now reviewed to measure the borrower’s willingness and ability to pay for the housing expenses and any other monthly credit obligations. They must also show that they have residual income left over every month after paying those expenses. In most cases, a

married couple would have to show at least $886 of residual income, depending on where they live.

Having a PACE loan property assessment on the tax bill can prevent a borrower from meeting that residual income requirement because it significantly increases their housing expenses. Many seniors relying on Social Security income already have difficulty meeting the residual income requirements for a reverse mortgage and the higher tax bill can make it impossible for some to qualify.

That’s only a small part of the problem. The bigger issue not only affects seniors seeking reverse mortgages, but all borrowers seeking mortgages.

Whether someone is buying or refinancing a property that has an existing PACE loan, most mortgage lenders do not allow

that PACE loan to be left open and require it to be paid off.

That is because the PACE loan assessment is attached to the property tax bill, and therefore, holds a superior lien position than any new or existing loans.

At the time of this writing, I do not know of any FHA reverse mortgage lender who allows a reverse mortgage on a home with an existing PACE loan. Of course, if the borrower has enough money saved up, the PACE loan may be paid off before closing. The problem is most of the PACE loans I have seen are large loan amounts around $25,000, so paying it off before closing is impossible for many people. Some PACE loans also have a prepayment penalty of up to five percent! That ultimately means less money for a reverse mortgage borrower and less money for them to use

ages

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to pay off any existing mortgage.

Now if their home is mortgage free, that’s not a big problem.

However, if they are using a reverse mortgage to pay off an existing mortgage, it may be a deal breaker for some seniors.

Many seniors are still paying for mortgages in their retirement years. Some cannot even retire because the income from Social Security alone simply would not be enough to live on and make a mortgage payment. This is where a reverse mortgage can really help. It can be used to pay off the homeowner’s existing mortgage so they no longer have a monthly mortgage payment, and as a result, they can finally retire.

PACE loans are an obstacle to reverse mortgages for some seniors. Before using a PACE loan, it is extremely important to know the consequences, but it’s

“We are starting to see more and more seniors with these PACE loan assessments tacked on to their property tax bills. In many cases, the new total payment is almost double the amount of the original property taxes.”

not always obvious or properly explained to consumers.

Access to the PACE loan program is not difficult and I’ve even seen some of the big box hardware stores promoting these PACE loan programs from providers such as Ygrene Energy Fund. Many roofing companies, solar panel companies and HVAC companies are also using these programs to finance products sold to consumers.

Sadly, many seniors with PACE loans simply won’t be able to take advantage of all the benefits that a reverse mortgage

offers. Going green may mean that some seniors will unintentionally have to postpone their retirement.

Gino Moro is Home Financing and Reverse Mortgage Specialist with Southland Mortgage Inc. Gino is also Counsel Member of the Broward Housing Counsel and Past President of the Florida Association of Mortgage Professionals Broward Chapter. He may be reached by phone at (954) 335-1972 or e-mail Gino@sfsmail.net.

MONDAY

Master the Markets with Barry Habib

Recap of key economic events that took place over the past week and a look ahead to events that will potentially impact interest rates in the housing market.

Brought to you by Airs every Monday at 7 a.m.

For more information on Planet Home Lending, please visit www.PHLTPO.com

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Centurion Roundtable Interviews

Learn the secrets of success from this elite group of high volume originators.

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TUESDAY

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The 60 Second Originator

Over 80% of home buyers and refinance consumers start their searches online. If you don’t possess the knowledge and practices required to convert loans from the internet then you need the 60 Second Originator to grow your origination.

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TUESDAY The Mortgage Godfather The

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Ralph LoVuolo Sr., “The Mortgage Godfather” shares his unique and innovative approach to mortgage origination. You better become a follower or else. It’s an offer you can’t refuse!

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Alternative Lending: Top Originator Strategies Strategies from top originators using alternative lending.

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WEDNESDAY

The Long & Short The Business of Short Sales

Housing Counselors Honing Their Skills

BY PAM MARRON

any of nearly three million consumers with a past short sale, over five million who have had a loan modification and an unknown number with a past deed-in-lieu (DIL) need urgent attention to correct a credit error known about since 2011. Affected past homeowners are now eligible to purchase a home again, but are being denied new Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac conventional financing where their credit for a short sale, DIL or modification shows up as a foreclosure and results in a new loan denial.

The initial problem is when short sale, DIL and modification credit shows up as a foreclosure, often anticipated if past late mortgage payments went over 120 days.

When the affected consumer is told their credit wrongly shows up as a foreclosure, a “dispute” is placed on the account which simply hides the credit from the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac automated systems and then must be deleted when the client applies for a new mortgage.

(Note that a new change to the Fannie Mae “dispute” policy will take effect on July 29, 2017).

Because the account was reinvestigated after the short sale, DIL or modification closing date, the “Date Reported” becomes more current, causing the automated system to provide a denial because it appears that the required wait timeframe has not been met.

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Loan originators often proceed with processing a new mortgage after checking the required wait timeframe against the closing date of the past short sale, DIL or modification.

But some time during the process or even as late as underwriting, the loan is run through either Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac automated systems where the problem is first seen.

Many lenders are unaware of the Fannie Mae workaround (there is no workaround for Freddie Mac) and often tell blindsided consumers to “Go get your credit fixed and come back.” With the limited supply of housing inventory, sellers are reluctant to extend closing dates for additional time needed to investigate the credit error.

Many homebuyers either lose the contract due to the delay to getting this fixed or change their loan type to a higher interest rate portfolio loan or an FHA loan.

It makes sense to engage the housing counseling industry into a pre-purchase solution. Loan originators are driven by contract deadlines. Non-profit housing counseling agencies work with clients on the “heavy lifting” to get issues corrected.

And HUD-approved housing counselors were able to verify “Economic Events” for extenuating circumstances for the past FHA “Back to Work” program.

Leading this initiative is the National Foundation for Credit Counseling (NFCC), a non-profit organization with HUD-approved

housing counselors and credit counseling services. The organization is training and testing solutions to address known fixes, with an emphasis on assisting affected consumers before they even sign a contract. The goal is to alert the real estate and mortgage industries of this service to get potential affected clients “mortgage ready” before sending them back to the real estate and mortgage professionals.

Providing this individualized service to those with a past short sale, DIL or modification who want to purchase a home again is a tremendous relief to these consumers who don’t want to relive their past nightmare again.

This pre-purchase assistance needs to be promoted to

affected consumers, the mortgage and real estate industries, loan processors and credit reporting agencies.

Correcting issues can be as quickly as one day to 60 days.

This will be an upfront fee paid service from an individual housing counselor. Loan originators who wish to assist these clients can refer them to HUD-approved housing counselors who have been trained on how to get these unique credit issues corrected once and for all. Then, when the client is deemed “mortgage ready,” they can come back to the loan originator who can provide a credit back towards mortgage closing costs when these folks are ready for a new mortgage.

Everyone benefits in the end … stay tuned!

Pam Marron (NMLS#: 246438) is senior loan originator with Innovative Mortgage Services Inc. (NMLS#: 250769) in Tampa Bay, Fla. She may be reached by phone at (727) 375-8986, e-mail PMarron@InnovativeMortgage.onmicrosoft.com or visit HousingCrisisStories.com, CloseWithPam.com or 8Problems.com.

FAMP 2017 Annual Convention & Trade Show "FAMP Through the Decades" August 9-12, 2017 • Orlando A Message From FAMP 2017-2018 President Kimber White

nmp news flash

continued from page 26

reflects the older legacy pipeline of loans that continue to heal, especially in judicial states which typically take longer to clear out.”

The Best Market for Global Real Estate Investment Is …

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would like to invite you all to the Florida Association of Mortgage Professionals 2017 Annual Convention & Trade Show, the largest mortgage trade show in the country! This year, our theme is “FAMP Through the Decades,” a theme that has special meaning to us, besides just being fun. We are offering four days of information, education, including our boot camp for new licensees, NMLS-approved continuing education and career-enhancing breakout sessions. In addition, there will be more than 100 vendors at our sold-out trade show.

FAMP has worked hard to provide you with the best tools and opportunities available to succeed in this ever-competitive marketplace.

FAMP was founded in 1960 and is the oldest mortgage trade association in the United States. FAMP was also the founders of NAMB–The Association of Mortgage Professionals and the model for all other state mortgage trade associations.

We have seen many changes in the past 57 years, but our association has always been a leader in supporting our members. Whether in Tallahassee or Washington, D.C., FAMP has always worked hard to represent the interest of Florida’s consumers and loan originators.

As Incoming President of FAMP, my goals and objectives this year are to offer Webinars and classes to add great value to our membership, offer a state first-time homebuyer day, adopt a community service project and engage with other mortgagerelated organizations so we can all work together. We are also continuing to explore affinity programs that will assist mortgage professionals in the day-to-day running of their businesses, yet another value-added benefit that FAMP offers. As always, we stay informed about state and federal legislation that impacts our industry. We keep you informed, fight the negative, and support the positive for all mortgage professionals.

I want to thank each of you who are members for your continued support, and if you are not a member, I ask you to stop by our membership booth and become a member while in Orlando. Together, we all make the difference. I can be reached at President@MyFAMP.org. We need your input–let us know what will help, as our purpose is to serve our industry.

Thank you for attending this year’s convention and thank you for supporting FAMP!

Kimber White is Incoming President of FAMP. He is also Branch Partner of RE Financial Services and has 30 years of experience in the mortgage industry. He also serves on the Board of Directors of NAMB—The Association of Mortgage Professionals. He may be reached by phone at (954) 306-3553 or e-mail President@MyFAMP.org.

SPONSORED EDITORIAL

Where should the world’s wealthiest and savviest real estate investors place their funds? In a new survey from the London-based investment bank Schroders, the top answer is Los Angeles.

In the third annual Schroders Global Cities 30 Index, factors including age demographics, median income, university ranking, retail sales and gross domestic product were factored into the analysis. Los Angeles ranked first out of 160 global cities, edging out London. Los Angeles was among five U.S. cities in the index’s top 10, with Boston in third place, Chicago in fourth, New York in fifth and Houston in seventh.

“The scale and economic depth of LA makes it a compelling location to work and live. One of its key economic strengths is that it doesn’t have to rely on only one industry,” said Tom Walker, Co-Head of Global Real Estate at Schroders. “The technology sector, in particular, has grown substantially over the past few years, and this has not only boosted demand for office space but also for residential property, much of it due to the increased hiring of Millennials.”

Underwater Borrower Level Drops Below 2M Mark

For the first time in 11 years, the number of underwater

borrowers fell below the two million mark, according to new data from Black Knight Financial Services (BKFS).

During the first quarter, the number of underwater borrowers declined by 16 percent as 350,000 borrowers regained equity. As a result, the total underwater population was down to 1.8 million in the first three months of this year. Since last year, the underwater population declined by nearly one million borrowers since last year, a 35 percent yearover-year plummet.

Black Knight also determined that nearly half of the nation’s remaining underwater borrowers are living in the bottom 20 percent of homes by price in their markets. At the other end of the spectrum, the company determined that tappable equity has risen by $695 billion from last year, bringing total lendable equity to just under $5 trillion; more than 40 million homeowners have tappable equity available today, which is the largest population ever recorded.

“What stands out is the disparity we see in this improvement,” said Black Knight Data & Analytics Executive Vice President Ben Graboske. “As has been the case for some time now, negative equity has become more and more a localized phenomenon. But it’s also becoming concentrated among a particular class of homeowner. Nearly half of all borrowers who remain underwater own homes in the lowest 20 percent of prices in their respective markets.

While the nation as a whole now has a negative equity rate of just 3.6 percent, among owners in that lowest price tier, it’s over eight percent. In fact, these lowestprice-tier properties are more than twice as likely to be underwater as those in the next price tier up, and 6.5 times more likely to be underwater than those living in the top 20 percent of the market. This is the highest differential we’ve seen between high- and low-price tiers since we began keeping track in 2005.” continued on page 81

Make Yo our Marketing e E Easy “The accu uracy of the data and the near n e clusiv contact wit w as they ar ae a mortga age moment, a much softe from a bor tradition nal

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By Barbara Yolles

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he mortgage business has taken up an increasingly high interest in the Millennial marketplace over the years, which is great, but it is shining a light on a pretty big identity crisis that exists because of that Millennial-heavy focus.

Millennials, as a group, are recognized as a tech-savvy bunch that is fast-paced and craves simplicity, ease of access, and the ability to customize their experiences. They want to do things their way, and they want to do them easily.

Doesn’t that sound like the exact opposite of the mortgage business?

Mortgages are about as cut and dry a commodity as you’ll find in any market.

There are hundreds of big banks and lenders throughout the country that offer the same products and the same pricing.

That’s about as lame as you can be as a business model in the eyes of Millennials. Millennials get excited about new food and drinks, new apps, new technology—a fresh set of capabilities that didn’t exist before. Yet, the concept of mortgages feels monotonous and lacks any sense of change beyond the daily fluctuation of interest rates.

Despite the fact that more housingrelated content is directed at Millennials than seemingly ever before, a lot of big players in the mortgage world seem to be in an uphill quest to appeal to the Millennial crowd because they aren’t speaking the same language.

We want those young up-and-comers to be excited about the idea of homeownership, yet the industry isn’t offering enough to actually excite them.

All they hear about is one big thought-leader after another touting the

advantages of buying over renting.

They have well-to-do, know-it-all adults oversimplifying their lifestyles, telling them to sacrifice things like avocado toast in order to conform to society’s expectation of the typical life timeline— graduate from college, get a job, get married and then buy a house.

Quite frankly, it’s a lot of what Millennials specifically aren’t interested in: An additional sense of authority in their lives. They don’t want to be told what to do, they want to experiment and experience life their own way, and on their own schedule.

Don’t tell Millennials to get a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage over a 7/1 adjustable rate mortgage (ARM) … give them information and the pros and cons of each, and let them decide.

Don’t tell Millennials how much of a downpayment they should put down on a house … list out their options and let them decide if paying 20 percent, 10 percent, three percent or one percent is best for their long-term plans.

Give them the information they desire and get out of their way.

When it comes to discussing the value of housing, there’s too much pitching going on and not enough catching. Not enough listening. Mortgage experts are too busy telling Millennials how to think, as opposed to adapting and catering to their point of view.

Millennials want to be entertained.

They are more interested in highlights and easy bite-sized morsels of content than long-winded rhetoric. They prefer to watch quick “how-to” videos on YouTube over reading lengthy articles or instruction manuals. Millennials stay up on current events by browsing their Twitter and Facebook newsfeeds instead of reading newspapers or watching the local news.

If mortgage companies are going to crack the Millennial code and encourage the younger demographic to become homeowners, we’ve got to do more by saying less.

At United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM), we’re making great strides in our marketing efforts to help mortgage brokers speak the Millennials’ language more clearly through social media and other forms of outreach.

One of our recent successes was our “Breaking News” campaign that resulted from a Millennial Housing Outlook study we conducted with Michigan State University.

The study itself gauged the opinions and attitudes that Millennials have toward homeownership. It produced a very relevant and effective look into what soon-to-be Millennial homebuyers are thinking, for example:

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Those were some pretty eye-opening numbers. We could have just taken those stats and shoved them in the faces of Millennials walking down the street.

“See! Your peers from around the

Barbara Yolles is the Chief Marketing Officer for United Wholesale Mortgage (UWM).

With more than 25 years of experience in advertising, Barbara has pioneered a new path for marketing effectiveness in the mortgage industry, forming a client-centric and relationship-focused agency model that has propelled UWM’s growth and the success of its clients throughout the country.

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Sixty-seven percent of Millennials thought they needed a 20 percent downpayment to purchase a home.

Only seven percent were aware that downpayment options under five percent even existed.

Ninety-six percent said they would be more likely to buy a home if they knew a downpayment could be as low as the equivalent of two months’ rent.

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country said they would be more likely to buy a house, so you should too!”

No, that wouldn’t be effective. That would be more pitching when we should be catching. Instead, we transformed that data into content that Millennials appreciated—a series of entertaining minute-long “Breaking News” clips that delivered the same information, but in a humorous and easily digestible (and shareable) manner.

We used attention-grabbing headlines like, “Millennials Learn Their Parents Are Liars” to add tongue-in-cheek humor to breathe life into what are otherwise just run-of-the-mill research statistics.

We posted the videos on our UWM Facebook page, with two weeks between each, and surpassed 100,000 views and shares among them in that short timeframe.

That additional attention isn’t just beneficial to our social media metrics and brand recognition in the marketplace; it’s beneficial to the Millennials consuming the content.

We took the cut and dry research that has come to define the mortgage business and adapted it into the type of engaging content that our target audience prefers.

There are a lot of Millennials out there who are ready and open to buying a home, whether they realize it or not.

The challenge isn’t for mortgage companies to persuade them through pitching and selling, but by effectively communicating by speaking their preferred language.

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SOCIAL MEDIA Eight Insights About Video in Mortgage Marketing

By Ashley Benson

he results have been in for some time. According to a survey by industry leader Animoto, videos engage prospective customers up to four times more effectively than print media and online text content. Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s why mortgage professionals need to know the best ways to make and use video productions.

Whether you are the chief marketing officer of a major lender or an independent loan officer, you are responsible for presenting information to your audiences. Therefore, the motion pictures that you release must be fascinating, informative and appropriate to the situation. Otherwise, you may lose customers to the competitor with superior video production, if not a better loan product.

The statistics on video marketing effectiveness are staggering.

According to the Mortgage Marketing Institute, audiences have a 75 percent better understanding of a product when viewing a video as opposed to reading information. Landing pages with video increase conversions up to 82 percent, and e-mails that include videos can increase click-through rates by 90 percent.

Here are eight insights about video that will help marketers and loan officers get great results when you deploy video either for lead generation, product and process information, or compliance purposes.

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1. Quality is critical Because every mortgage company offers some variety of video content, you cannot afford to post or distribute low quality content. With more than 300 hours of video uploaded to YouTube every minute, viewers are drawn to those that are the sharpest. And, even though most videos are still viewed on computer screens, use of mobile devices is increasing exponentially. On small screens, low resolution, unpolished productions are at an even greater disadvantage. Producing quality videos can be affordable. It just takes planning.

2. Your video needs an introduction People will not watch your video, no matter how good it is, if it is not continued on page 62

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eight insights about video in mortgage marketing

presented and promoted properly. Hollywood knows that.

Think about the press and promotion involved with new film releases. Typically, the more fanfare, the more widely viewed the film is out of the gate.

Mortgage marketers can do the same. As soon as you start planning an informational video or Webinar, spread the word. In addition to sending invites, alert people in the footers of e-mails, on social media, and on the relevant pages of your Web site.

Wherever you post the video, make sure the description is clear (with appropriate keywords particularly on YouTube for SEO purposes), concise and captivating.

3. Close and personal Video allows for a visual connection than can only be imagined in print. As humans, we naturally are inclined to feel a connection if we can see an

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image rather than read about it.

Also, audiences relate to presenters and performers. If you are a marketer producing a video, check out what other lenders have distributed on YouTube and make sure your presenter comes across as more engaging, knowledgeable and trustworthy than other spokespeople.

4. Don’t overwhelm your audience Experts agree on the perfect length for an informative or promotional video: As short as possible! When people find your video on YouTube, your Web site or in an e-mail, they decide to watch because the subject, title or cover image grabs them.

Once you have the viewer’s attention, explain what you plan to cover in your video, as quickly as possible. If you do that effectively, they are likely to phone, complete a form or

continued from page 61

perhaps watch another video. If the video loses focus or wanders, you may have lost the viewer as a customer. According to studies by video hosting and analytics company Wistia, audience engagement is highest for videos of one to two minutes in length.

5. Don’t leave your Webinars in cold storage Too many companies fail to extract the full value of the Webinars they produce.

Depending on the substance of the discussion, one extended length live, interactive session can be morphed into numerous communication vehicles. Was a fresh idea articulated? Use it to germinate a blog post or speech.

Was there a particularly dynamic 30-60 second exchange? Edit it and post to YouTube.

6. A video in every e-mail Sure, you distribute your videos via e-mail blasts and in marketing automation/CRM campaigns. But, mortgage professionals may also consider building their video audiences almost every time they send an e-mail. Whether you are a CEO or a loan processor, you can provide an opportunity to expand the recipient’s understanding of your company. Include links in the footers or in a PS, always with a poignant description or introduction. The overall impact of your videos is greatly impacted by the number of YouTube views and comments.

Suppose all employees at your company send 5,000 e-mails a day, each containing your YouTube video link. If 0.5 percent of the recipients check out a video each working day of the year, that converts to 6,500 additional video views each year, enough to significantly enhance your ranking on Google and YouTube.

7. The 3Rs: Reiterate, Reuse and Recycle The video you create today can be used for many years to come.

Compare them to television reruns. You may not hook most of your audience the first time you distribute your video or broadcast your Webinar.

Therefore, continually promote each video on different social media platforms. Of course, you don’t want to tweet about the same video 10 times a day. But, you will benefit by announcing each video in your portfolio two to three times a week. Shuffle the times of day you post about each video and use various headlines, teasers and introductions.

8. Ask for it Ask your customers for a recorded video testimonial after closing. If you record these videos yourself be sure to use a tripod to keep the camera steady. If you cannot record in person, a recorded Skype interview might suffice. There are many ways to use these third-party endorsements. You can post each one individually on social media or use them to punctuate and enhance a longer commercially produced video about your company’s services.

Remember to ask your subjects to sign a standard release form to allow you to use their statement and specify exactly how it may be used.

Once you have used these insights and tips to integrate more video into your marketing, the enthusiasm surrounding your products will increase steadily. Remember, quality is critical so you may need to take smaller steps in implementing video. However you decide to proceed, remember to have fun and use the platform to your advantage.

Ashley Benson is Senior Marketing Specialist for Angel Oak Mortgage Solutions. She can be reached by phone at (855) 539-4910 or by email at Ashley.Benson@AngelOakMS.com.

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Developing a Winning Social Media Strategy

By Rick Arvielo

ven though social media started out as a way for people to connect, it has rapidly evolved into a powerful tool that’s impacting nearly every industry. With its constantly increasing popularity, it is changing the way people do business, in particular, their approach to marketing. What used to take a significant amount of time and money to advertise can now be promoted using a fraction of the resources through social media. It just takes having the right strategy in place in order to start generating the right results.

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Produce video content Today’s social media climate is all about video production.

Videos have become the dominant type of content users want. It’s no longer exclusive to simply YouTube. It has emerged as the common way of connecting with people on nearly every social media platform from Facebook to LinkedIn. Video is consuming 74 percent of all Internet traffic and it’s on the rise. Over the next two years, 85 percent of Internet usage will be driven by online videos. Since today’s consumer prefers watching their content, any mortgage professional looking to find success on social media must be creating it; they go hand-in-hand.

Fortunately, advancements in technology have made video production easier and more practical than ever for every business professional; therefore, tapping into this popular means of communication requires little more than turning on your smartphone in order to get started. Using this method of video production not only has the capacity to still yield quality footage when it’s done right, but creating organic content has become very widely accepted to the point it’s revolutionizing social media. There are more daily minutes watched on Facebook than YouTube.

Facebook users consume more than 100 million hours of video per day, with a significant

amount of it coming from raw, unedited productions.

Anyone not capitalizing on video marketing is missing a prime opportunity to win in today’s marketplace. Not only is there no cost for posting on social media channels, but it can be done without a big-budget production team, which means it’s within anyone’s reach.

Furthermore, visual content such

enormous amount of competition inundating the various social media outlets and they’re all vying for exposure with the same audience–today’s consumer; therefore, the challenge becomes making your content stand out.

That’s why each mortgage professional needs to know what sets them apart from the fray.

While branding has mainly been synonymous with major companies, it’s equally as important for loan originators, who are in essence their own small business. Therefore, you have to develop your personal brand identity. It starts with

“… if you want to succeed on social media you can’t be focused on pushing a hard sell.

Instead, you have to be committed to adding value to clients and real estate partners.” as videos are 40 times more likely to be shared than other forms of content. That means with minimal effort and the right ingenuity, loan officers have the potential to connect with even more people and influence a larger share of the market.

Know your personal brand Considering eight billion videos are viewed per day on Facebook alone, it’s easy to see that social media is flooded with activity. There’s an

knowing your area of expertise, your unique attributes, and what you bring to the marketplace.

It’s all about who you are and how you want your customers to perceive you. Whether your skill is working with veteran borrowers or you’re a knowledgeable veteran with years of experience in the industry, you have to understand what separates you from your competition so that you can showcase it effectively.

When you have a clearly established personal brand it

brings a greater level of continuity to your social media channels, which makes you memorable. This ability to be well-branded leads to an expanded capacity to reach your target audience. That’s because when consumers can clearly identify the type of service you provide and associate you with a niche market, you build credibility so it’s easier to generate the right leads and attract new customers.

Create value-added content The key comes in understanding that these social platforms are not best suited for traditional marketing. People don’t use Facebook 50 minutes a day in order to review the latest sales ads. Therefore, if you want to succeed on social media you can’t be focused on pushing a hard sell. Instead, you have to be committed to adding value to clients and real estate partners.

You have to know your audience and tailor your content to meet their needs.

In an age where there is an overload of information, business professionals need to offer beneficial content that’s easy-todigest; otherwise, the modernday consumer will quickly bypass it. When you create useful yet engaging social posts, it appeals to people in such a way that they begin to take an interest in you and the services you provide.

Whether you’re sharing a Webinar with your real estate partners or providing tips on the buying process with your customers, if you approach your social strategy from the standpoint of being a teacher as opposed to a salesperson, it ends up being more effective.

One secret though is being authentic. People want to work with a loan officer who they can trust. Buying a home is one of the biggest financial decisions consumers make, so they’re looking for mortgage professionals who not only know the industry, but have their best interest in mind. When you equip borrowers with content that combines value along with a genuine desire to serve them, they’ll not only value you as a resource, but as a go-to loan officer.

Expanding your network Once you begin adding value to your online community, it begins increasing your potential to

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expand your reach. If people appreciate your content, theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll share it within their online community. This opens the door to a new realm of customers and partners because every engagement, whether itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a like, comment, or share, is viewed by a new network of people, which increases your exposure. As you become more visible so does your business.

Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s one of the primary benefits to developing your social media strategy. It gives you the power to considerably expand your network.

Connecting within your current sphere of influence is your starting point, but it shouldnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t be your end objective. If you want to maximize your reach, you have to engage the people you know while building new relationships.

That happens by being active and consistent on social media.

Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s hard to develop a solid network without regular interaction with your target audience. Everyday social media users expect engagement in conversation, response to

comments, and helpful insight from industry leaders. Even though it requires a commitment of time, thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s far-reaching potential. When leveraged properly, social media can serve as a resource that feeds your pipeline with a steady stream of prospects; which ultimately turns into a worthwhile investment.

Build solid reviews As your network expands, itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s important to already have in place a solid portfolio of online reviews that reinforce your offline services. Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s what homebuyers today want. Theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re making decisions heavily influenced by the feedback of other customers. Even though they may initially encounter you on social media, theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re still going to do their research before engaging in business. In fact, 84 percent of them will look to online reviews and will trust what they read as much as the personal recommendation that they receive from a friend or family in their social network;

so not having online reviews is like closing the door on business from the vast section of the buying population who rely on them for transaction purposes. Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s one of the reasons itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s essential for mortgage professionals to provide exceptional service and to build good customer relationships because satisfied and unsatisfied customers alike share their experiences online.

Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll be difficult to remain competitive in the vast field of originators without a good online reputation. Since consumers care about these reviews, so must loan officers if

they expect to fully capitalize on the leads generated through social media.

Take charge Social media isnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t simply a here today, gone tomorrow trend but itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s the direction of the future. By next year alone, more than one-third of the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s population will be active users. Since its widespread presence is only increasing, mortgage professionals should be concentrating on implementing a strategy sooner than later if the game plan is to pave the way for future success.

Rick Arvielo is Chief Executive Officer of New American Funding. In 2003, Rick and his wife Patty began doing business as New American Funding, a 40-employee, refinance call-center. In 2011, Rick introduced purchase transactions to the companyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s operations, and in 2012, New American Funding opened their first branch. Their retail division has since exploded, adding 130-plus retail branches and more than 750 loan officers focused on purchase transactions in only four years.

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Maximizing Your Social Media Footprint

By Tiffany Hade

ith technology today, searching online continues to be the first step that homebuyers take to begin the homebuying process, with more than 93 percent of buyers 36 years or younger and with over 50 percent across all generations according to the National Association of Realtors (NAR). In today’s market, 38 percent of borrowers start with a real estate agent, which means that the other 62 percent are starting their home search with Web sites such as Google, Zillow, Redfin, etc. Therefore, in order to stand out from the competition, you need to have a strong online and social media presence to get the phone ringing and keep it ringing. So where do you start? Have you Googled yourself? What comes up?

Take a look at each of your social media profiles. Your face is your recognition and should be your profile photo. Then, you want to be easy to contact … can clients easily find your cellphone number, Web site and e-mail? It can be frustrating when you are trying to contact someone and you don’t know how to. Try using your cover photo to display this information so it is easy for them to see.

Social media profiles look negative if you are not consistently posting. Potential clients will wonder if you are still in the business and question your communication skills. Make sure you are consistently posting, and if you are bad at remembering to post often, set yourself an e-mail reminder to post on social media or use systems like Hootsuite that allow you to schedule posts days, weeks and even months in advance.

So now that you have updated the look of your social media presence, what about the content?

A blog is a great way to increase your profile and has everything to do with technology. With every blog article you create, you are

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improving your social media presence as it makes an online footprint with a unique URL for that article to assist in your Google search. l The key to blogging is to keep your audience informed and bring them value so they keep coming back to read your blog. l Many clients have similar questions on the homebuying

how effective each post is. l Blogs aren’t just for articles, you can post short videos to keep your audience interested. l You want to engage with your audience and get them involved. Ask questions like, “If you could make an addition to your home, what would it be?”

How else can I stand out above my competition?

“Despite the vast number of studies and statistics showing that social media has a positive impact on building a brand, many people still don’t really know what social media can do for them …”

or the refinance process, so capitalize on it by creating a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) page with the questions as the title of your blog article. l Put links in your blog and on social media pages with a call to action. Once they are there, offer something of value like a free guide to home design ideas, etc.

When you drive people to these pages, you are also measuring traffic to see just

Join a local community organization and post photos of your experience on social media.

By doing this, you are showing your audience that you are a part of the community. This is a form of networking, thus a great source of leads for the future.

Sponsor local business grand openings for press coverage and access to the community. Help feed the needy, do a charity walk, participate in Habitat for Humanity events, school cleanups, etc.

Organize homebuyer seminars with your real estate agent partners as a way to drive traffic and business to you both. Once you are a part of the community, visit local businesses, such as your local doctor’s office, hair salons, etc. and ask to display business cards. Join local community groups on social media to find out what is happening in your area. This will help give you tips on where and when to find new clients. Make sure to post photos while at your community events, at house closings, open houses, etc.

CRM systems are a great way for you to stay top-ofmind sending e-mails about birthdays, house anniversaries, holidays and after loan campaigns, with home improvement tips to help improve your home value.

According to NAR, the median period of time that debt had delayed homebuyers from saving for a downpayment was three years, and 13 percent of all buyers reported that saving for a downpayment was the most difficult task of the homebuying process. This would be a great opportunity to post a blog article about the myths of downpayment required to own a home, as well as the many low downpayment assistance programs offers.

Despite the vast number of studies and statistics showing that social media has a positive impact on building a brand, many people still don’t really know what social media can do for them or how to best use it to build their personal and business brands. In general, there are three specific ways that almost everyone can benefit from.

The first is enhanced brand recognition and thought leadership. It’s simple, the more frequently you show up on social media, the greater your brand exposure, and the more recognizable and credible you become. The second benefit is increased trust through leveraged credibility. Let’s say a major real estate agent in your area tweets a post you have written or promotes you on their Facebook page. What this says

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about your brand is that they have enough trust in your expertise to put their brand behind yours. That’s leveraged credibility, and it helps to create the kind of trust necessary for personal brand success.

Not only will your clients recommend you, but you will win over your real estate agents as well. All generations of buyers continue to consult a real estate agent or broker to help them buy and sell their home. Therefore, you want to create and/or strengthen your relationship as they help broaden your audience. Important activities to participate and post on social media with them include open houses, tour days, community events, office visits, etc.

The third social media marketing benefit for your brand is that it gives you a competitive advantage. Let’s say a potential customer has narrowed the field down to you and one other competitor. If you have an active and quality social media presence, be it a blog, Facebook, LinkedIn or other,

and your competitor has a weak social media presence, which brand do you think is going to catch their attention?

The answer is the one with the more engaged social media audience. While this might not be the only criteria that will factor into their choice, we know that social media does influence a customer’s decision making. One study from the ODM Group showed that 74 percent of consumers rely on social networks to guide purchase decisions.

While spiffy social media is not an ‘if you build it they will come’ proposition, it is one of the ways that you can immediately impact your personal brand. Understanding how you personally would benefit from participating in social media and coming up with a strategy for how to make the most of it is key to building your personal brand.

Testimonials on your Web site and on social media are a great way to receive referrals, and video testimonials are

even better as videos have a higher impact than text. One study from Mext Consulting showed that if consumers trust a brand, 83 percent of people will recommend it. According to Hubspot.com, Facebook posts with images see 2.3 times more engagement than those without images while four times as many consumers would prefer to watch a video

than read about it.

Remember that in today’s age and with technology, the competition is greater, so you need to build and maintain your social media footprint in this business. You want to build and maintain a lasting relationship with your clients not only for their home loans, but for their word of mouth referrals as well.

Tiffany Hade is Public Relations and Social Media Specialist for Mountain West Financial Inc. She has been with Mountain West Financial for five-plus years and holds a bachelor of science degree in business with an emphasis in marketing from California State University, Long Beach. At Mountain West, Tiffany manages public relations and social media campaigns for the organization, as well as supports the marketing department with advertising material, Web sites and brand development.

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Social Media for Loan Officers–Growing Your Brand and Your Business

By Lauren Messenger

hether you love it or hate it, use it personally or professionally (or both), social media is the new modern form of marketing. This is not news. Social media platforms have been around for quite some time now; however, businesses and business professionals are now utilizing this widely effective tool more than ever before.

While some things like personalized notes or face-toface meetings never go out of style, embracing the current trend of social media marketing for business can greatly help you to improve your personal brand and professional relationships. It can even help you generate leads to build up your database and grow

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your business. Seizing the opportunities social media can provide to you and implementing them into your everyday business strategies is the first step in helping grow your online presence.

While many loan officers have long embraced social platforms like Facebook and LinkedIn, often they are not using these channels effectively, leading them to view social media as a time-waster, and as we all know in the mortgage industry, time is money.

If you are already on social media, it may be time for an evaluation. What do your social profiles look like? When was your last post? What was it about?

How many followers do you have and are you engaging them with relevant and interesting content?

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Also, ask yourself–are you actually being social? That is, engaging with those who engage with you. Commenting, responding, liking, etc. to any follower of yours who communicate with you? This is important in staying connected with your followers and keeping them involved with your business.

Regularly asking these questions to evaluate the success of your social media pages is vital in helping understand what’s working and what’s not within your audience.

If you haven’t begun to embrace social networks or marketing yourself as a professional on social yet, you may be a little late to the party.

However, it’s never too late or too difficult to get started as these platforms make creating profiles quick and easy. If you are one of those professionals who view social media as an ineffective time waster, you may be thinking–what’s the point?

Why would someone opt to follow me, a mortgage professional, online? While it is logical to wonder what material mortgage professionals bring to the table to help engage followers, specifically those who are not currently involved in the mortgage process, it is important to remember the value you bring to your audience as both a seasoned mortgage professional and a knowledgeable financial professional in general. Realizing, first and foremost, that your financial knowledge and advice constitutes a great value you have to offer to your followers and your community is key in succeeding at social media as a mortgage pro.

To utilize social media and utilize it well, you must understand how it works and attempt to think like your audience. While it may be easy to post daily mortgage information from your favorite news source or today’s mortgage rates, it is important to have your audience’s interests in mind.

Don’t get me wrong–posting mortgage information is important to your followers, but while that information may be relevant for your realtor partners or someone who is already home shopping and in need of financing, it may be completely irrelevant to others who are not in the same position. This is where your financial expertise comes

into play. Share tips for college grads on how to pay down debt, share money saving strategies, or share tips for parents on how to start a college fund for their children. You can also utilize your presence in the community to share closing photos with local customers, fun happenings in your area, or great restaurants to visit in your nearby city.

Remember: keep your content light, fun, and enticing to your audience while also providing educational pieces related to mortgages and personal finances. Using social media as a tool to demonstrate your personal knowledge and commitment to your clients will ultimately be what sets you a part from any mortgage professional out there solely sharing rate information and current industry news.

In addition to the types of content you should be posting, pay attention to how often you are sharing on social media.

Postings should be frequent but not so frequent that your followers feel like they are being spammed. This can be a turn off for social media users and even steer customers away from working with you. While some platforms, like Twitter, encourage you to tweet multiple times per day, others, like Facebook, are better used as a “once a day” platform.

When it comes to Facebook, it is important to remember that your name and personal brand can impact and reach thousands of users per day. Facebook is the largest social network in the world today with over 1.86 billion monthly active users in the year 2016 alone. With that being said, it is safe to say that almost everyone has a profile or some kind of presence on the platform, including your past, present, and future clients, referral partners, family and friends. With this large of an audience available to you, it is necessary to have a professional presence on the site to showcase your services offered, industry news, client reviews, free advertisements, location and contact information and more.

Facebook is also a fantastic way to reach the millennial consumer with the most common user age ranging from 25- to 34years-old. When attempting to reach a Millennial consumer, it is important to first remember that

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most Millennials have little to no knowledge of the mortgage process aside from what they’ve learned from their parents. This is helpful in knowing that some content should be geared towards education on the mortgage lending and homebuying process, how it works, what programs are available, how to contact you, etc. First-time buyers and renters, not just Millennials, can also find value in these types of posts.

Utilizing Facebook reviews, as well as other popular review sites such as Google, Yelp or Zillow, is also a great way to turn your happy clients into an army of raving fans with their testimonials displayed directly onto your page for the world to see. This may prompt you to change up your current strategy upon closing with clients to help encourage them to visit one of your review sites, or your Facebook business page, to write you a review of your service. Positive reviews can also help provide social proof, otherwise known as social influence, to others who may be

looking to begin the mortgage process themselves. Leveraging social proof can help prompt others to work with you, knowing you have provided a positive experience to one of their peers ultimately turning Facebook fans into new clients.

Lastly, Facebook is also frequently used as a search engine by many which increases the need for a presence on the platform to confirm credibility. If someone hears of your name from a friend or family member, it is very likely in this day and age that they will search you on Facebook. If you cannot be found, it could mean losing business due to lack of credibility.

As for reaching and interacting with your referral partner audience, having a professional LinkedIn profile is a must. LinkedIn is the world’s largest professional social network with hundreds of millions of active users that was created with showcasing your professional life in mind. While LinkedIn may not be as “trendy”

as Facebook for the younger generation, having a professional profile on LinkedIn is certainly important for focusing on your referral-based business. A professional LinkedIn profile offers the benefits of connecting and staying in front of current clients and referral partners along with the ability to network with new partners you’d benefit working with. LinkedIn also offers a portal for your online resume where you can display your skillset, years of experience, qualifications, personal recommendations, and more. It

also offers your referral partners and colleagues the opportunity to endorse you for certain skills and industry knowledge helping build your credibility as a mortgage expert.

Overall, having an online presence on various social media platforms is simply a strong way to market yourself and connect with your clients, referral partners, family, and friends.

Regardless of your thoughts on social media, embracing these modern marketing tools and utilizing them correctly can and will help your business grow.

Lauren Messenger is Social Media and Talent Acquisition Specialist for Inlanta Mortgage Inc. As a newbie to the mortgage industry, Lauren has successfully assisted a number of mortgage industry professionals succeed in utilizing their social media profiles since 2015. Lauren’s background in public relations provides a unique perspective on marketing to the public and she has initiated new and innovative online strategies to help loan officers grow their online presence to build their business.

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Video as a Relationship Building Tool

By Adam P. Smith

re you still not doing video marketing? What is wrong with you? I wrote a similar article for National Mortgage Professional Magazine years ago about how important this is and you’re still not doing it?

About what a great marketing tool this is and you’re still not doing it? Seriously, what is wrong with you?

Look, we are still working with the largest transactions of people’s lives. It still doesn’t matter if it’s a first-time buyer with a $50,000 condo or a giant developer building a $50 million building. It’s the largest transaction of their respective lives. That requires a certain amount of interaction with a prospect or lead in order to win that business, right? You need enough time and interaction with them to prove that you have the competency to do the job and the character to be entrusted with it, right? We still know you need an average of up to a dozen interactions with someone to prove those two things, right? Video marketing still truncates that number.

For almost 10 years now, I have done a weekly video blog for the real estate community and I can tell you, it works. In a very paparazzi-esque way, which I love and am still caught off guard by, I am regularly approached by people who “know me.” I’ve never met them, but they know me. They have been watching the videos and they actually do know a lot about me. They know what my office looks like. What my old office looked like. What my home office looks like. They know my wardrobe. They know how I speak … my tone, inflection, sense of humor, sarcasm, and my violent eye rolls. All of that.

They really do know me, actually. Maybe it shouldn’t be such a surprise when someone I have never met before approaches me at a trade event and starts chatting with

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me like we’ve been friends for years. In a way, we have been friends for years.

Now, taking that into account, don’t you think you could decrease the number of interactions you need to have with people in order to prove that competency and character with some video marketing? Of course if you could. Maybe now

informative. Almost everyone in the neighborhood knows her, even if they have never met her.

The result … I would bet she is on one side of the transaction or the other on at least half of the deals in our neighborhood. Or the agent we did a video for on the subject of moving with pets.

He is an animal lover and volunteers at a shelter and gets a

“Video marketing, like almost all existing social media and tech communication arenas has already peaked.

We’re almost at a point where Internet video hours watched rivals television hours watched.”

it’s only a half-a-dozen interactions needed since these people think they already know you. You may have just cut that time frame, your sale cycle, in half.

Take the example of one real estate agent I know. She is a neighbor of mine and does a video blog for the community and neighborhood. Simple stuff, like when the pool is going to open, or that we are switching trash pickup day. Nothing fancy, but very effective and

lot of social media connections that way. That video was watched nearly 1,500 times, on Facebook alone, in the first 24 hours and a bunch of the people he volunteers with that didn’t know he was an agent called him about real estate right away.

These are solid testimonials as to why to do some video marketing.

Another major perk of all this video work is that you don’t have to spend a dime doing it.

You already have a camera.

Cellphone cameras are amazing these days, but even your laptop, tablet, GoPro or whatever will work. Every public library has resources like a green screen available.

The assets you should use in your videos are all free. The software is free. Windows Movie Maker, iMovie, whatever. A YouTube account is free. The ability to have YouTube spread those videos across all your social media is free. You can e-mail links to your videos for free. So, we know the price is still right.

We have actually taken it a bit farther in our office this year. We have a full blown studio with professional lighting, a green screen, 4K video, wireless audio and great editing software. But, we also produce much better videos than we used to and we get more traction with them than we used to.

However, I want to emphasize that you don’t have to go all out to get the results that video marketing can bring.

You just have to do it.

I still believe the biggest struggle is still in the content. I am still wowed by Frank Garay and Brian Stevens of The National Real Estate Post and Mortgage Shots. How they are able to have so much content to do a video nearly every day gets them nothing but respect from me. But the content is still something you have to steer to make it relevant to your business. Do you want to do videos for new clients?

Maybe something like a series of canned videos on subjects like “What to Expect at Closing” or “Now That You’re Under Contract” and send the same video link to every client when they are in those respective stages of the process. This can be a great tool if you find yourself spending a lot of time answering the same questions for clients over and over. Put it in a video, send it to them and save yourself some time. Do you want to do videos for referral partners? Do you want to do videos with your referral partners? Do you want to do videos for past clients? Do you want to do videos promoting your clients’ businesses? Do you want to do them for the overall

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community? Do you want to do them for your local area? Figure that out and it will help with the content.

After years and years of doing video marketing, I can tell you a few things I have learned. The most important one is that videos about real estate and mortgages are boring. I have been doing videos almost a decade and mortgages about two decades and even I find it boring. And these two things are my wheelhouse, for sure. I can also tell you that commercials are boring. Nobody watches commercials unless it’s the Super Bowl. Don’t so videos about you. The videos I see that get great response are not about the lender, or agent, or their business or about real estate and mortgages. They are about things that are fun and interesting to the viewer, so keep that in mind when it comes to content. Focus on your audience and what they would want to watch. Oh, and most importantly, keep it brief.

We all have rampant ADD and your long and boring video just got clicked away. I see lenders doing 10 minute videos about 203K loans or mortgage insurance and I’m grateful that the rare second cup of coffee I had that day is keeping me from slipping into a coma of boredom.

For those of you that didn’t already know, this all started because I got a lot of pressure from a number of colleagues across the country to start doing videos. Most of it from Frank and Brian, actually, and I hated it. And I hated them.

Not really. I don’t mind the work, or being on camera, or public speaking, etc. Yes, I do know that’s an issue that many of you are going to have to overcome, I just happen to be one of the lucky ones that isn’t bothered by it. But now I have embraced even the content issues. I even spent a long weekend at the NREP offices learning even more about video marketing and some of the things in this

article. Now I don’t hate Frank and Brian anymore, either.

So, please don’t underestimate how important video marketing is for your business. Video marketing, like almost all existing social media and tech communication arenas

has already peaked. We’re almost at a point where Internet video hours watched rivals television hours watched. Did you know that?

See why this is important?

What are you waiting for? Go on. Do videos. Rinse. Repeat.

Adam P. Smith is President of The Colorado Real Estate Finance Group Inc., a commercial and residential real estate finance firm. He may be reached by phone at (303) 770-2262, ext. 112 or e-mail Adam@CoreFinanceGroup.com.

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Online Reputation Management: Keep the Conversation Going

By Lisa Buller

“It takes 20 years to build a reputation and five minutes to ruin it. If you think about that, you’ll do things differently.”

—Warren Buffet en years ago, the Internet was very different. Marketers were selling to a passive audience, telling consumers what to think, and offering no options for discourse. Today’s consumers are no longer passive. Rather, they can express themselves online in very powerful ways. It’s imperative that we understand how consumers can shape perceptions about our companies, our products and our services. It’s also important that we work to mitigate negative perceptions and improve positive perceptions– that’s what we refer to as online reputation management.

Today’s Internet landscape requires companies to put a conscious effort into online reputation management. Since 91 percent of buyers read online reviews before they choose a mortgage provider and another 37 percent go directly to a review site (like Zillow or Trulia), monitoring and managing your online reputation is no longer optional.

The time to develop and manage your online reputation is now. With more than 79 percent of borrowers and referral partners on social media sites, your customers are already talking about you–whether you are actively marketing or not. If you are not active, you are missing a huge marketing opportunity and potentially setting yourself up to need reputation repair.

It’s possible that your marketing team already has a plan for helping you manage your online reputation. Be sure to find out what resources are available for your specific situation. While the specifics of every situation are different, the best route to true online reputation management is through the three-step process

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of building, establishing and maintaining your presence.

Step 1: Build There are several ways to build your online reputation. Here are the top three: l Be transparent: Honesty and trustworthiness are essential to building your online reputation.

Transparency should not only apply your online participation, but also all other aspects of your career and business. l Be non-self-promotional: No one will want to read your content or interact with you if all you do is talk about yourself, or if all conversations read like a sales pitch. If you’re not sure how to tell the difference between being social and selling (aka, spamming), a good rule of thumb is the 70-20-10 rule for content management.

Here’s what it looks like: l Seventy percent of your content should be sharing others’ posts and ideas: You don’t need to be the original author of everything on your social sites. By including relevant content from other sources, such as community events, you add value to your channel. l Twenty percent of your content should add value and build brand awareness: Content in this category includes unique information such as housing market updates, first-time homebuyer tips, and branch differentiators (e.g., your loan originators speak Spanish). l Ten percent of your content should promote your branch or a specific loan originator: Social media offers a small window for promotions of new loan products, in-branch events, and special qualifications (e.g., first-time homebuyer credit). l Be accessible, responsive and involved: An important

“Since 91 percent of buyers read online reviews before they choose a mortgage provider and another 37 percent go directly to a review site (like Zillow or Trulia), monitoring and managing your online reputation is no longer optional.”

part of building your online reputation is participation.

Listening and understanding what your buyers and realtor partners are saying, so they know you care about them, is key. Be sure to respond to questions, comments on your blog, tweets and Facebook posts. When you respond to reviews, potential buyers and partners see that you care about your existing buyers and partners, and that helps them believe you would care for them too.

Step 2: Establish Cultivate relationships with your most enthusiastic brand supporters online. To do this, go where they are by setting up: 1. Social accounts on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn 2. Local review accounts on sites including Yelp and Citysearch 3. Your physical address on Google My Business (GMB), formerly Google Places. Your Google Plus and YouTube pages will be manageable through your GMB account.

4. Google Alerts for your mortgage company, products and top executives so that you will know when someone is talking about you Although it’s not quite as detrimental as an online reputation that needs repair, an online reputation that is non-existent can still be damaging to your business.

Contact your marketing team and ask about best practices for setting up accounts on online channels.

Step 3: Protect and maintain The time of relying on the technological inability of people has long past. Through the convenience of technology and social networking, any person can review your reputation for the purpose of doing business with you, and can find a great deal about your company.

Negative reviews are bound to happen, and receiving them is not the end of the world. In fact, responding well to a negative review can go a long

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take the time to share their experience, yet most of them will happily do so if you ask.

With so many people looking at and responding to reviews, and engaging with buyers and realtor partners on social media, mortgage branches have the opportunity to increase buyer engagement, position their brand competently, address buyer concerns and properly qualify

future buyers all while reaching more people. What’s more, buyers and realtors who make use of social media and review

sites in selecting and researching a loan originator are more likely to leave a review if the profile shows a two-way conversation.

Lisa Buller has over 14 years of digital marketing experience and has been with Waterstone Mortgage as the Digital Marketing Specialist for one year. Lisa’s primary focus at Waterstone Mortgage is on digital marketing and online reputation management.

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way in building trust and credibility. Here are six things you can do to come out even stronger after negative reviews: 1. Keep your composure: Receiving a negative review can feel very personal. Your first instinct may be to give the reviewer a piece of your mind. Don’t do it! Step away, get a coffee and calm down.

No one likes to be on the receiving end of a negative review. However, even if you think the reviewer is wrong, you can’t be critical, curse, or bring up any details about the loan. Never argue with a reviewer. Seek a solution. If you’re solutions-oriented, things will calm down soon enough. And sometimes, the community you’ve built will come to your defense.

2. Do not delete the review or post: Show the quality and professionalism of your branch by addressing the problem. Admit your faults, fix them, and carry on.

3. Take responsibility: Respond to the reviewer just as you would if you were standing face to face at your branch. When you respond to negative reviews, try to find a solution to better serve that buyer or realtor partner.

Reach out to reviewers by providing your direct line or e-mail. Ask for more details and invite them to have conversations offline about their experiences.

4. Say something: Whether you receive a negative or positive review, post a public response. The lack of a response to a negative review conveys to readers you’re not engaged online and, as a result, the review will hold more merit in users’ minds. Always respond to a negative review with a positive statement.

5. Some people are just unhappy: Know that no matter what you’ve done to try to rectify a situation, a negative review may be the unfortunate result if you just cannot make that buyer happy. It will happen.

Apologize, express regret, learn something from it, and move on.

6. Ask your happiest buyers and realtor partners for reviews: In our busy world, happy customers forget to

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Three Billy Goats Gruff

By Eric Weinstein

know this edition of National Mortgage Professional Magazine has a Special Focus on “Social Media.” I will get to it. First, this fairy tale.

Three Billy Goats Gruff is Norwegian fairy tale. It was published in 1844, but it is much, much older. Archeologists have found this fairy tale carved into ancient Scandinavian runes which date back to the time of the Vikings in the 8th Century.

As you may know from the show, the Viking Empire spanned from Moscow (which they originally settled in 862 AD as a trading post) to Maine in North America. They were a fierce warlike people, and very strategic in their battle tactics, which is what made them so successful. If you are a small mortgage shop, you can learn from this.

This is how the fairy tale goes:

I

Once upon a time, there were three Billy goat brothers named, “Big,” “Bigger” and “Biggest.”

They lived in a quiet town called “Goat Town.” Across the river was a huge hill of tall grass and they were hungry. “YUM! “They thought.

BUT, in order to cross the river, they had to traverse a bridge and under that bridge lived a horrible, mean troll. The troll had a long nose, a big ugly face and smelled terrible. And the troll was hungry, too!

Undeterred, “Big” Billy goat goes “trip-trap, trip-trapping” across the bridge.

“Who is that ‘trip-trap, triptrapping’ across MY bridge,” screams the Troll!

“Just I”, says Big Billy Goat.

“I will eat you for my breakfast,” yells the troll.

“Who me?” says Big Billy Goat, “I am way too small for you.”

You should wait for my

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brother, he is much bigger than me.

“Oh, all right” says the Troll, so he lets Big Billy Goat go past.

Next comes “Bigger” Billy Goat “trip trap, trip trapping” across the bridge.

“Who is that ‘trip-trap, triptrapping’ across MY Bridge,” screams the Troll.

It is I, “Bigger Billy Goat,” says Bigger Billy Goat.

“I will eat you for my breakfast,” yells the troll.

“Who me?” says Bigger Billy Goat, “I am way too small for you. You should wait for my brother, he is the Biggest Billy Goat of all.”

“Oh, all right,” says the troll, “But he better be the biggest.”

Next comes BIGGEST Billy Goat, “stomp, stomp stomping” across the bridge.

And the timbers of the bridge shook.

“Who is that stomping across my bridge?” yells the troll.

“It is ME! Biggest Billy Goat, the Biggest Billy Goat of all” says Biggest Billy Goat.

“I am going to eat you for my break …”

But before the troll could finish, Biggest Billy Goat gouges his eyes out with his horns blinding him. While the Troll is helpless, he head butts him to the floor. Then as the troll screams for mercy, he stomps him with his feet, breaks all his bones and throws him in the icy river to die a slow horrible death.

The three brothers then went on to eat the tall grass and get fat.

The end.

Pretty horrific story right?

Well, that is because you are not a Viking child. The story is a metaphor for the Viking way of life.

The goats represent the

Viking people.

The tall grass represents a goal, maybe land to conquest or just surviving in a harsh environment.

The troll represents the many obstacles we all must overcome in life to get achieve our goal.

If you read Marvel Comic books, you know that Thor was a god of War to the Vikings, but Loki, his brother was the god of trickery and deception.

When faced with an insurmountable obstacle, the first two goats use Loki to deceive their enemy while amassing overwhelming odds. You saw this battle tactic still used today in Desert Storm. It is called “Shock and Awe.” First, you stall and deceive your enemy, then you attack with overwhelming forces.

If you play RISK, you know what I mean.

The moral is, when faced with an obstacle, you do not need to tackle head on it right away.

Sometimes you have to buy time while you marshal your forces, knowledge or skills.

Only when you have enough to completely destroy the problem do you move. The key element was teaching Viking children to bide time. The second is advice … when you do move, do it swiftly, completely and without mercy.

Social media advertising for a small mortgage brokerage shop is a daunting task. Many shops go into it not knowing anything and failing miserably. Learn from the story. DO NOT go into it unless you have clear overwhelming odds of succeeding. Study it, marshal your forces and only attempt it if you know for sure you will be victorious.

That is the Viking way. That is why they have an NFL team in Minnesota named after them and your small mortgage brokerage shop doesn’t.

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Eric Weinstein worked in banking, on the commercial real estate side until 1991, when he fell in love with residential lending. In 1995, he started a small mortgage company in his basement called Carteret Mortgage Corporation, which in 2003, grew to one of the largest mortgage broker companies in the United States. Eric is semi-retired, doing mortgages by referral only. He may be reached by phone at (703) 505-8692 or e-mail EWeinstein4U@gmail.com.

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Up Your Social Media Game Using Your CRM

By Jordan Douglas

rom Facebook to Twitter, Instagram to YouTube, Pinterest and beyond, if thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s content to share, thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s a platform designed specifically with it in mind.

And you know what they sayâ&#x20AC;&#x201C;if you build it, they will come. People all over the world turn to social media for updates on friends and family, breaking news, and posts from various businesses about their product or service.

But how can you be expected to keep up with something as trivial as social media when you have numbers to crunch, phone calls to make, and loans to close? It can be a tall order. After all, not only do you have to remember to post, you need content to share. A tool you may not have thought about using to up your social media game is your CRM. More than a contact database, your CRM can (and should) be used to manage relationships with customers.

Yes, this is commonly done through emails and phone calls, but there are also several

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ways in which you can utilize this powerful tool to master your workflow and improve way you do business, including managing your social profiles.

Set daily reminders The struggle many mortgage professionals face is finding the time to spend on social media. When youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve got so much on your plate, it can be difficult to prioritize tasks like Facebook and Twitter posts.

However, like any other aspect of business, the key to getting more done during the day often boils down to organization.

Thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s where your CRM comes in. You arenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t limited to simple reminders to make phone calls or otherwise contact your clients. Start to think outside the box and utilize your system as a total workflow assistant.

One way you can do this is set up notifications within your CRM to remind you to post on your profiles. That way, when youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re in the office, youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ll already have part of your day set aside to dedicate to social posting.

The timing, frequency, and

content you share are all up to you. As a mortgage professional, your goal should be to show interested potential borrowers in your community you are an expert in your field.

You donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t have to post multiple times a day. You donâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t even have to post once a day. Just make sure youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re keeping up with your profile(s) to the point where, when potential customers visit your page, they see recent, relevant, helpful activity.

Utilize and repurpose content Deciding what to share is the most difficult part of maintaining an active business social media account. Weâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve all been thereâ&#x20AC;&#x201C;full of motivation and willpower to put out content only to immediately hit a roadblock when itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s time to create a post.

Luckily, your CRM should be able to help you past these temporary lapses in creativity.

The key to taking advantage of this piece of advice is to first utilize a CRM with the ability to pull in content from the Internet for you to share.

Great CRMs can craft prewritten newsletters autopopulated with headlines and stories relevant to your client base. And while this is generally designed with e-mail in mind, you can also repurpose the content that has been compiled for you by

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sharing it on your social media pages.

First, determine if your CRM has this feature. After all, not all systems are created equal.

If yours does, experiment with adding various news sources (if it doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t, consider looking into a new, more comprehensive system).

Essentially, you can turn your CRM into a virtual one-stopshop for shareable, relevant content your customers and potential customers will enjoy reading.

Then, when your system prompts you to make a post (because youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve followed the previous advice and set up reminders), you can quickly and easily switch over to your feed(s), pull a few interesting headlines, and share the stories across different platforms.

Feel free to add your own commentary or opinions to make the posts more personal.

You can even invite discussion and ask for others to comment with their thoughts. That way youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re encouraging interaction with your followers and allowing for a more personal relationship to form.

Ask your contacts for content Turning to news feeds within your CRM is not the only way to outsource inspiration for your social posts. You can also glean valuable, shareable content from your contacts just by asking.

One way to do this is by crafting an e-mail campaign within your CRM that is filled with occasional messages asking for such material. One email may prompt them to provide you with a testimonial.

Another may ask for a picture of the borrower and their family from closing day. You can ask for success stories or even supply them with a Q&A form to fill out.

Whatever type of content you want to see, you can write up a quick email asking for it.

Certain CRMs even have some pre-written for you, out-of-thebox.

Sharing this type of past client content is great for two reasonsâ&#x20AC;&#x201C;it gives you something to keep your accounts active with and shows interested potential

SOCIAL MEDIA a special focus on SOCIAL MEDIA a special focus on SOCIAL MEDIA a spec

borrowers you have a history of doing your job well.

Build custom audiences A major part of using social media for business purposes is taking advantage of the paid advertising options within the platforms themselves. While the specifics of creating social ads could fill an entirely new article, there is one aspect in particular that can be implemented now based on the data you’re probably already housing within your CRM. Advanced targeting for Facebook can be done in two ways (that closely relate to your CRM): Custom Audiences and Lookalike Audiences.

Say, for example, you want to run a campaign that reengages past customers to try and get them to consider refinancing. From your CRM, you can download a “CSV” or “TXT” file of past borrower names and email addresses, upload them to Facebook, and advertise your refinancing options to just this group. This is a Custom Audience.

A Lookalike Audience allows you to create new audiences based on traits from your Custom Audience. This way, you can expand on the advertising you’re doing to your current contacts in order to bring in new ones. The goal is to be smart with your marketing and spend your money targeting the best prospects possible to increase your ROI. In marketing, it’s important to reach your prospects where they are. According to Statista, in 2017, 81 percent of people in the US have at least one social media profile. Suffice it to say, it’s a pretty safe bet the customers and potential customers you want to reach are online. And if they log on to their platform of choice and see one of your competitors but don’t see you, you’re already a step behind when it comes to winning their business.

If you’re not active on social media, do yourself and your mortgage business a favor and get involved. Even if you just

choose one to begin with (Facebook is a good place to start), the goal is simply to have an active presence so interested borrowers can easily find you when they start doing their research and learn about who you are.

It only makes sense to utilize a tool you already have to increase your marketing. Your

CRM should be working for you, and this is a great way to expand its reach. Remember, a great CRM is more than a contact database. It’s there to help you to improve your customer relationships. And, since your customers are more than likely on social media, they’ll notice and appreciate the new, more social, you.

Jordan Douglas is the Marketing Manager for Whiteboard Mortgage Software, the CRM and day-to-day workflow assistant that allows you to relive your most successful day—everyday. She can be reached by e-mail at Jordan.Douglas@Whiteboard.Software.

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My Thanks to You

By Jerome Mayne

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have been referred to as the ‘self-taught’ expert on fraudulent behavior. You see, I don’t have any formal education in the areas of fraud or ethics and no scholarly credentials to put after my name. But I did get myself involved in a white-collar conspiracy back in the 1990s, and served a 21-month prison sentence for this fraud.

This probably qualifies for something.

Even though I had no punitive requirement to do so, I began speaking in the real estate finance industry after my release from federal prison in 2001. I wanted to raise fraud awareness, help prevent companies from losing money, and hopefully, help business professionals make better decisions in tough situations and stay out of prison.

These past 16 years of public speaking have not always been easy, and sometimes I question why I do it. I rarely get a warm and fuzzy feeling when I stand in front of my former real estate finance industry peers and reveal I was one of the bad guys. You might imagine that there is a stigma to having the title “Felon” next to my name, which I purposely perpetuate.

But every so often, I receive letters or e-mails like the one below.

This is why I do what I do …

I

to someone else for $3.5 million.

The buyer would pay the original seller from the profits received on the sale where the buyer obtained an 80 percent loan-to-value mortgage on the $3.5 million purchase price.

This resulted in a profit of $1.6 million for the first buyer. The second buyer would escrow 18-24 months of payments and keep the properties insured so no one suspected anything was wrong.

Of course, each property was easier to appraise because of the ‘comparable’ created by the previous transaction, which just closed. The sales prices were all inflated because the appraiser was in on the scheme.

But Jerome, this is where our paths, yours and mine, did not cross. While working on these files, I would lay awake at night and became irritable. There even came a point where I couldn’t eat.

I was falling apart. I was a nervous wreck.

Then one day I got a moment of clarity and I made my decision.

I couldn’t do it.

And, I didn’t do it. I never submitted even one loan to underwriting. I made up problem after problem, which eventually resulted in them taking the transactions to a different lender.

Shortly thereafter, came Black Monday. And at approximately 8:30 a.m., the Secret Service and the FBI raided the office across the street. I watched them carry out CPUs and box after box of files as evidence. Several people were escorted from the building in handcuffs.

It was indeed surreal. Just 150 yards from my office door, I watched it all happen and I cried. I cried for the destruction of countless families, reputations and inevitable failure of my peers and the financial losses to the lenders.

It only took the agents 40 minutes to complete their tasks.

I thank God every day for giving me the fortitude to say no.

Jerome, my best wishes to you.

Please keep spreading your message. This industry needs more like you.

Since 2001, Jerome Mayne has been an international public speaker on fraud and ethics in the finance industry. He is the author of the book, Diary of a White Collar Criminal and coauthor of the real estate continuing education program titled, Mortgage Fraud and Predatory Lending–What Every Agent Should Know (Kaplan). Jerome may be reached by phone at (612) 919-3007, e-mail Jerome@JeromeMayne.com or visit JeromeMayne.com.

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I agreed and he gave a complete set of all the documents used when he originated the loans to be refinanced six months earlier.

I dug in and looked over the files. The two loans totaled over $5.5 million. The borrowers had excellent credit, huge deposit accounts and the loan-to-value of the properties used as collateral for the loans was within reason.

The following Monday, an individual representing both borrowers contacted me and indicated these two loans were a test. If I successfully closed these, there would be many more. Later in the week, the same parties contacted me to handle purchase loans for eight multimillion-dollar properties in exclusive metropolitan areas of Detroit representing over $20 million in loan production.

I was given phone numbers and credit reports for all borrowers.

Each borrower was applying for loan programs based on statedincome or no-documentation loans. The borrower’s representative was not at all concerned with what the loan fees or points would be. He indicated I should use my discretion, but also charge whatever I wanted. I searched the history of the properties, which revealed they had been listed for sale and sold often with increases in sales prices each time.

I wasn’t stupid or naïve, I knew exactly what they were up to. I began using the same justification process you used Jerome, while closing those loans for Milt. I started saying “Everyone else is doing it” and “I’ll just do a couple of these sketchy loans, then I’ll get out.” I spent three months on these loans; there were countless phone calls at all hours of the day and night, shady individual after shady individual and the growing pit in my stomach was getting bigger by the day.

One day, I got my wits about me and realized I had uncovered a house-flipping scheme. You know, for example, when a property is purchased for $1.2 million, then the buyer sells the same property

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Mr. Mayne: I poke around on the Internet occasionally for mortgage fraudrelated topics. Today, I came across your Web site. I am 37years-old. I have been employed within the real estate industry since the mid-1990s. This business is all I have ever known. I read about the time you had to tell your kids you were going to prison for two years.

You explained to your young children you would be gone for two Santa Claus’s. I began to cry for two reasons: I too am a dad and have a very similar story to share with you.

Years ago, I was newly married and began working as a closer for a large mortgage banking institution. I learned voraciously. I was passionate and I loved my job.

I moved on to become a processor, and eventually, an underwriter. I was good at what I did and proud of it. I became the go-to guy for everyone in the office. I was adept and well-versed in all facets of the business.

Business was changing rapidly.

We were entering a refinance era.

The mortgage market was booming. The advent of new loan

programs, automated underwriting and new processing styles, meant we were reinventing the business on a daily basis. Life was going extremely well. My wife and I had our first child.

My career continued to move ahead. One day, a sales manager within the company approached me. He said, “Quit the inside and become a loan officer. With your knowledge base and your skills, you’ll make a lot of money.”

I was hesitant to become a loan officer since the compensation was 100 percent commission. I had a wife, an 18-month-old son and a second child on the way. We were managing on my $36,000 annual salary, but I was working 12-hour days. I knew what commissioned loan officers were making and I wanted better for my family.

I made the leap to become a loan officer. In the first month, I closed $2.5 million in mortgage loans. My paycheck was in excess of $17,000! I had sales directors and division managers contacting me. I was offered branch management positions, territory manager positions and headhunters from competitors were calling me. I was a star.

I closed $25 million in loans my first year as loan officer. My wife and I had money we never dreamed of. My job was flexible, as I had the ability to make my own hours and life was grand. We had two beautiful children, and a third on the way. Business was humming along. We were spending money and not saving a dime. The economy was blessing the masses with never before seen interest rates.

Then, the bottom dropped out.

Rates went up. We were in the throes of a depression and I became a common commodity … a struggling loan officer.

My self-esteem was destroyed. I was no longer the star and there no more five-figure paychecks.

Each day was a struggle and filled with worries. I lost my self-worth. I let my family down since I was the sole provider. Previously, no one had to worry because I always handled it. Overnight, it was all stripped away. Eventually, we filed for bankruptcy and I made a series of horrendous personal choices.

Next, I started working for a lifelong friend at a small broker’s office who offered a generous commission split. I was beginning to get back on track. Business was steady, but much slower than in years past.

The owner of the mortgage company across the street approached me. He asked if I could help him with two refinances.

States Continue to Support Electronic Notarizations

By Gavin T. Ales

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hroughout 2017, DocMagic has posted several articles noting the passage of new or revised notary public acts at a state level. Most of these changes have recognized the increased importance of electronic transactions and the need for rules governing the notarization of electronic signatures as more and more lenders push to a fully electronic mortgage application and closing process.

Nevada’s bill (Assembly Bill 476 or AB 476) clarifies existing law related to electronic notarizations. AB 476 removes the requirement for electronic notaries to file an additional bond and take an additional oath beyond that required of nonelectronic notaries. In addition, the legal changes also remove the separate terms for a notary public’s electronic and nonelectronic notary commissions. Both terms will now run concurrently and be renewed at the same time. Nevada’s notary public law does not allow its commissioned notaries public to perform electronic notarizations outside of the state.

Nevada’s AB 476 is effective July 1, 2017.

In May, both Washington and Colorado enacted versions of the Revised Uniform Law on Notarial Acts (RULNA) under Senate Bill 5081 and 132, respectively. The Idaho legislature adopted its version of the RULNA in March of this year under House Bill 209. The RULNA, promulgated by the Uniform Law Commission, specifically provides for both electronic and non-electronic notarizations and ensures compliance with the federal ESIGN Act, as well as the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act and the Uniform Real Property Electronic Recording Act. Washington’s bill is effective July 1, 2018.

Colorado’s bill is effective Aug. 9, 2017, with the RULNA provisions becoming effective July 1, 2018. Idaho’s bill is primarily effective July 1, 2017, with some parts having a later effective date.

Arguably going the furthest toward expanding the use of electronic notarizations, Texas passed House Bill 1217 in May as well. As opposed to those bills discussed above, the Texas bill follows Virginia in allowing notarizations to occur not only when the signer is physically present with the notary but also allows for the personal appearance to occur via electronic means such as a webcam. HB 1217 expands the means for personal appearance to include “appearing by an interactive two-way audio and video communication.” Notarizations performed using this means are termed “online notarizations.”

When completing the notarial certificate for an online notarization, the notary public must also include the means used for personal appearance. The Texas bill is effective July 1, 2018.

Gavin T. Ales is chief compliance officer with Torrance, Calif.-based DocMagic Inc. He may be reached by phone at (800) 649-1362, ext. 6446 or e-mail Gavin@DocMagic.com.

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tales from the closing table

suffered losses in excess of $33 million as a result.

One more time Wire fraud still a problem for lenders! I sound like a broken record, but the wire fraud scheme that has infected the mortgage industry over the past few years remains a serious problem as it has victimized more lenders, law firms and even some title agencies. It is imperative that lenders verify wiring instructions at the source and be wary of changes late in the process. E-mail security is also a key component of antifraud measures.

Fannie and Freddie’s Uniform Closing Dataset to take effect Lenders will be required to deliver the Uniform Closing Dataset (UCD) for loans that have Note dated on or after Sept. 25, 2017. The information to be collected matches currentClosing Disclosure (CD) details with additional data points, which include the real estate agent and settlement agent’s license number, but also including whether the license is issued by a federal, state or local issuing agency, the name of the agency, and the issuance date.

Volume down industry-wide According to CNBC Business News, mortgage applications are down six percent overall, while refinance apps were down nine percent. Summer is generally a boom for purchase business, but rate increases have placed a damper on refinance business, affecting overall business volume from the same period last year.

On the lighter side…a bit late for Father’s Day: “The Perfect Husband” There are several men in the

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locker room of a private club after exercising. Suddenly, a cellphone that is on one of the benches rings. A man picks it up and the following conversation ensues: “Hello?”

“Honey, It’s me.”

“Sugar!”

“Are you at the club?”

“Yes.” “Great! I am at the mall two blocks from where you are. I saw a beautiful mink coat. It is absolutely gorgeous!! Can I buy it?”

“What’s the price?”

“Only $5,800” “Well, okay … go ahead and get, if you like it that much …”

“Ahhh and I also stopped by the Mercedes dealership and saw the 2018 models. I saw one I really liked. I spoke with the salesman and he gave me a really good price ... and since we need to exchange the BMW that we bought last year...”

“What price did he quote you?”

“Only $90,000 ...”

“Okay, but for that price I want it with all the options.”

“Great!, before we hang up, something else...”

“What?”

“I stopped by the real estate agent this morning, and I saw the house we had looked at last year ... it’s on sale! Remember? The one with beachfront property ...”

“How much are they asking?”

“Only $1.5 million.”

“Well then, go ahead and place an offer, but bid $1.2 million.”

“Okay sweetie ... Thanks!

I’ll see you later! Love you!”

The man hangs up the phone and looks around while holding the phone out saying, “Does anyone know who this phone belongs to?”

Andrew Liput has been a Corporate, Real Estate and Banking Attorney for nearly 30 years He is the Founder, CEO and President of Secure Insight, the first data intelligence and risk analytics firm to offer specialized vendor management services to mortgage lenders and banks nationwide addressing settlement agent risk. He can be reached by e-mail at ALiput@SecureInsight.com.

nmp news flash

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Carson Supports Selling Public Housing Units to Private Developers

After years of relatively mild activity, rental apartment construction is now at a 20year high, according to data from Yardi Matrix. By the end of this year, apartment completions are expected to top 345,000, a 21 percent

NMP News Flash column Phone #: (516) 409-5555 E-mail: Newsroom@MortgageNewsNetwork.com

Note: Submissions sent via email are preferred. The deadline for submissions is the 1st of the month prior to the target issue.

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Rental Apartment Construction at 20-Year High

Your turn National Mortgage Professional

Magazine invites you to submit any information on regulatory changes, legislative updates, human interest stories or any other newsworthy items pertaining to the mortgage industry to the attention of:

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Housing and Urban Development Secretary Dr. Ben Carson has expressed support for a plan that would enable cities to sell public housing properties to private developers.

In an interview with the Baltimore Sun, Dr. Carson stated that he was in favor of removing the federal Rental Assistance Demonstration program’s cap that limits the sale of public housing units to 225,000. The program was put into place by the Obama Administration in 2014 and the cap’s removal is part of the White House’s budget proposal that was submitted to Congress, and Dr. Carson theorized that selling the units to private developers will help speed much-needed repairs on many of these properties.

“In order to put a dent in the tremendous need for affordable housing, we’re going to have to switch to a different kind of model,” Dr. Carson said. “We need to improve upon that program, maybe lift the cap that exists.

Those are the kinds of models that are going to help us not to continue to create blight.”

increase from last year’s level of more than 285,000 new units.

New York City leads the rental apartment construction market, with more than 17,000 new units in 2016 and nearly 27,000 projected for this year.

Dallas is the nation’s second fastest growing rental apartment market, with 25,000 new units planned for completion this year, while Denver and Seattle are

expected to see 13,100 and 10,100 new units this year, respectively.

On the other hand, California is not experiencing an apartment construction boom to meet its population needs. The capital city of Sacramento is expected to see only 740 new units this year, while Riverside is on target for 1,170 new units. Among the nation’s major metro areas, New Orleans is the least active with only 500 units projected for this year.

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The Importance of Effective Pre-Game Prepa

By Amy Bergseth uilding next generation software for the financial services industry is serious business, but so is ice hockey, or any other professional sport for that matter. Perhaps because I play hockey and manage a software development team, I can see the similarities between the two more clearly than others. Playing a game well and developing software are more alike than many people might realize.

This concept may seem strange to many because in the game we’re playing in financial—and in the mortgage industry, specifically—the stakes are so incredibly high. A mistake here can literally put you out of the game. In fact, if there is one lesson our industry can take away from the last few years of CFPB oversight, it’s that the government is no longer just playing around.

Each management team is

B

dealing with this problem in its own way. Some are adopting an authoritarian approach in which mistakes are not tolerated and those who cannot operate flawlessly are removed from their positions. Others are retreating from financial services that carry overly burdensome regulatory oversight. And then there are some that attempt to create a safe harbor through effective vendor management. Most are probably employing a few techniques from each of these camps.

In this article, I’d like to propose another source of inspiration for those who are dedicated to playing a game that they cannot afford to lose. Like professional athletes, if we hope to succeed we’re going to need to prepare well before the game, cultivating a skillset that will be most useful during the contest.

Preparing for success is critically important in business. In sports, we call it pre-game prep.

Preparing for success in sports We live in a world where participation, for many, is good enough. People are taught that 90 percent of success at any job is just showing up and that everyone gets a medal or trophy for just playing the game. That’s not the way the real world works, and it’s not the way to satisfy the people that I work with today. In our world, winning is still important.

I’ll admit that winning wasn’t my first objective when I made the decision to find a team of adults to play competitive hockey with. I really just wanted to find the right team. And, in truth, playing is really what it’s all about in my league, but people still keep score and it still feels good to win. But a lot had to happen before I ever got out on the ice to play my first game.

First, I had to get equipment. In my case, I got my brother’s handme-down equipment and then added a few things, like a good pair of skates. Then it was time to learn

the basic skills. Sure, I knew how to skate, but working with a team on the ice is something different. It took practice. Over time, I graduated up to the more nuanced moves and skills good hockey players use to win games.

When the schedule for my first season came out, I was still in pregame prep mode, working on plays with my teammates, honing my technique. Most importantly, I was learning how to communicate with my team out on the ice.

Communication failures when the puck is in play is the surest way to lose the game.

Before the first game ever starts, our coach has worked through many of the details and has given us strategies to deal with common occurrences we’re likely to face. I know in advance where I will be positioned if we end up with a faceoff at a particular part of the ice. I know the first play we’ll try to execute if we get control of the puck. I know what our Plan B is if we cannot execute on that. This

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paration for Effective Mortgage Compliance the team mentality continues to drive the relationship. This is important because outside forces are changing the rules of the game as our customers compete for growth in the marketplace. We have to be working in lockstep as this occurs to maintain compliance. We can only do that if we’re a team.

The key to running successful teams For me, success in our business is very similar to success with my hockey team on the ice. The most important thing is effective communication. It is the key to running a winning team, in business or on the ice.

When the flow of communication slows down or stops, the process of software implementation freezes up and new users do not adopt. It

becomes overwhelming and since they cannot afford to make a mistake, they will fall back on what they know and the new initiative will fail. When this happens, companies lose time, money and often are forced to work with outdated technology that cannot meet the compliance needs of the business.

Because we’re on the same team with our customers, we keep that communication flowing all the time.

We’re available anytime they need us because we know that winning depends upon remaining in lockstep at all times.

For some businesses this may seem like a lot of work, but when you start by developing a team culture it becomes just another part of a strategy for winning the game of business.

Amy Bergseth is Chief Operations Officer for Glencoe, Ill.based Exceleras, formerly Default Servicing Technologies.

She can be reached by e-mail at Amy.Bergseth@Exceleras.com.

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It’s the same thing in business When I’m not on the ice, I’m leading a team that is creating powerful software for the real estate industry.

Our pre-game prep is very similar.

My co-workers are my teammates and I’m looking for people who fit our culture, know how to play well on a team and understand that to win we must all work together. Once I find them, I prepare them for the work ahead.

New team members sit through every software demo we have so they will fully understand the requirements from the customer’s point of view. Intensive training will

show them how we fulfill these requirements. Mentoring, job shadowing and near constant coaching are all part of the preparation for a new team member.

Cross-training is important, so they know what upstream team members are doing before the work gets to them and what downstream teammates need from them before they can proceed with their work.

Learning is a constant part of the job, especially in an industry with such stringent regulatory oversight.

After the new functionality has been developed, we go through a similar process of pre-game prep just prior to the implementation process, only this time our customer is part of the team. We go through similar exercises so that everyone involved in the process knows that we’re all on the same team and if we don’t work together as a team we will not succeed.

Even after the software has been implemented and the customer is using the platform on a daily basis,

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takes the stress off the players and allows us to settle in and let our muscle memory take over, freeing us up to watch for developments, and to communicate and capitalize on opportunities. That’s how you win games.

The point is, we’ve gone through all of this and the game hasn’t even started yet.

Beware of the Workaround: Fle Software Increases Produ asketball legend Michael Jordan once said, “If you run into a wall, don’t turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it, or work around it.”

As a CEO and entrepreneur, I appreciate a good workaround. I’ve started several successful companies in my career, and were it not for creative thinking and persistence—the key ingredients of a good workaround—my companies may never have gotten off the ground.

Let’s face it … things don’t always go as planned. In fact, some days it seems like nothing goes as planned.

Success, especially in those cases, depends on your ability to act on the fly—to think on your feet and come up with a workaround that will get you from where you are to where you need to be.

I offer just one caveat.

If you don’t understand how—and more specifically, how long— to use a workaround,

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your bridge to success could route you toward increased risk and unnecessary costs.

Workarounds are great as an interim solution for getting you where you need to go in a pinch.

They are not, however, a substitute for good, solid planning. A lot of problems require more thought out solutions.

Sometimes the workaround that got you from Point A to Point B isn’t the best solution for a long-term repeatable process.

Let me give you a typical example that we see all the time when discussing appraisal workflow with prospects and customers.

Imagine that a year or two ago, the prospect, Company A made some major changes. Company A could be a lender or an AMC. Maybe the company implemented a new loan origination technology or is working with a lender that implemented one. Maybe it decided to open a new division—like wholesale or commercial lending.

Let’s say that Company A’s appraisal management system couldn’t be integrated

with the new loan origination system or configured to adapt to the new division.

Like most companies, Company A probably has plenty of smart employees, one of whom came up with a workaround that addressed the workflow obstacle. Perhaps it involved toggling between systems, the use of a spreadsheet to fill in the gaps, or possibly even required using a paper note pad to log or store information.

At first, everyone at Company A was likely to be understandably pleased with the solution because the workaround allowed the company to continue doing business.

It could reap the benefits of its technology systems, just with a bit more time and effort. The issue is, if Company A is typical of most companies, it probably stopped seeking a permanent solution once the workaround was discovered, because the obstacle was considered solved, and therefore no longer a priority. The informal bridge was assumed to be adequate to become a part of the

company’s workflow.

Now let’s fast forward to present day.

It’s a year or two later, and Company A is still using that workaround.

Every day, each time an appraisal order needs to be managed, the staff is taking the long way around, somewhere in the workflow, to move the process forward. Maybe they need to input information manually, whether by copying and pasting or rekeying the details. Or maybe instead of managing their residential and commercial pipelines, or retail and wholesale pipelines, in the same system, they need to sign off the system they’re using, then sign into another software. Maybe they can’t merge information at all and are relegated to printing two different

Flexible Appraisal Management ductivity With Less Effort

By Clint Cornett

mail, a spreadsheet or any other non-appraisal specific technology to help your appraisal management system take an appraisal order from Point A to Point B, you’re increasing quality and compliance risks—which can lead to fines, lost business and possibly even non-salable loans.

The appraisal process is one of the more intricate and time consuming activities in the mortgage cycle. There’s a lot of information in an appraisal report. If you’re using manual processes to cut and paste, or rekey data, you’re not just losing time. You’re also risking errors. In the appraisal space, one simple mistake can easily delay the process one full day, possibly more. In the purchase market that we’re in today, one full day could jeopardize the entire transaction.

What’s more, a flexible,

customizable appraisal management system allows you to grow the way you want to. Your process may serve you perfectly well today, but who’s to say that it will in five years? Today, you may be satisfied handling only residential transactions, but in a year or two, you may want to branch out. A flexible appraisal management technology will allow you to adapt your business to market opportunities, which not only saves money in the long run by allowing you to not only change technology as you see fit, but also capitalize on market opportunities so you can grow and expand your business.

The next time someone comes up with a great workaround, do yourself a favor and make time to analyze the solution. Left unattended, even the best workarounds can become a profit-reducing risk.

Clint Cornett is Founder and Chief Executive Officer of ValuTrac Software. Clint has more than two decades of experience in the appraisal segment and has built four successful businesses in the housing industry. He founded ValuTrac Software in 2009.

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what happens when workarounds aren’t vetted.

Some of our clients come from using a less flexible or customizable appraisal management system. Some were managing their appraisal processes primarily on Excel spreadsheets.

Regardless of their methods, almost all have been relying on timeconsuming workarounds for years. Almost all have patched-together processes, somewhere in their workflow. Almost all think that using manual intervention to fill in the gaps in their technology is normal because their technology providers have told them that flexibility isn’t an option. Almost all are stunned by how much more efficient, compliant, secure—and economical— their workflow becomes with a flexible, customizable appraisal management system. The more times an appraisal order is touched, the slower the process.

That’s not all, either.

Tedious workarounds don’t merely slow down the process. They compromise it as well. If you’re using paper, e-

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reports and trying to analyze them manually.

Whatever the case, either they’re using several different software systems with different logins and passwords or— even more dire— perhaps there are no additional passwords because they’re storing and transferring sensitive information via insecure methods.

In most cases, the company has no idea that they’re taking the long way around.

If a company hasn’t evaluated its workarounds, I can almost guarantee that it is sacrificing their overall business process.

Maybe they’re losing productivity or efficiency.

Maybe the sacrifice is in quality, security or compliance. It could be any or all these things.

Whatever they may be, those sacrifices are costing Company A somewhere down the line. We see it every day.

This is not unusual. It’s

Want to Unify Your Organization’s Production (and Other) Recruiting?

By Steve Rennie

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he process of recruiting passive candidates with a transferable book of business built upon trusted relationships remains a mystery to production leadership in the mortgage industry.

Questions often come up including: “Where do I find them?;” “How do we attract them?;” and most importantly, “How do we close and retain them?” These questions can be broken into individual categories with best practices and techniques, but what can you do as an organization to unify and become more effective at your strategic growth efforts overall? Here are a few ways you can begin to tackle this internally with your branch, area, region, or enterprise: 1. Train your team: Define your value proposition and Unique Selling Proposition (USP) with a single sentence. Having the language regarding your Six Core Components (Business Model, Leadership, Culture, Operations, Technology and Geography) and value proposition be uniform is crucial for your introduction. After that, you have the flexibility to freestyle.

2. Have an opener: Who are you, why are you calling, and what do you hope to accomplish? (Hint … look to develop a relationship, not hire someone over the phone).

3. Create goals: Create and use a metric to measure the activity you need to accomplish your goal.

4. Prepare for objections: We have learned that most managers dislike developing new relationships because of the rejection that can come with it. Define common objections and discuss how to overcome them.

5. Create an appropriate target list: This is not your 1,500 LinkedIn contacts. This lead list needs to be defined and targeted.

6. Scheduled review calls: Share successes, challenges and where you are finding traction with certain types of people or with specific companies.

7. Be organized: Have systems in place to compile data, as well as track and manage relationships and activity—if it cannot be measured, it cannot be managed.

8. Make it a team sport: Involve others in the process. This creates trust by helping validate the things you are presenting relative to your company value proposition and/or USPs being communicated in a similar way by all involved.

This type of initiative is always best executed as a team.

Creating an environment where you can provide coaching on the “soft skills” along with who and how to target those you are hunting will help you learn where your strengths are and where you have room for improvement. We have been involved in helping companies organize and execute these strategies for 16 years. There is a science and art to recruiting and retaining producers. If you have any questions or want to learn more, feel free to contact us.

Steve Rennie is chief sales officer with Model Match Inc., a technology platform and business plan used internally by sales leaders and executives at banks and mortgage companies. Model Match allows companies to organize production recruiting initiatives with structure, process and accountability.

Steve may be reached by phone at (949) 356-5792 or e-mail Steve.Rennie@ModelMatch.com.

SPONSORED EDITORIAL

heard on the street the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) has awarded VRM with a 10-year contract for program management, marketing and other real estate services on the VA’s portfolio of single-family residential real estate.

“VRM is pleased to receive this award and looks forward to continuing to perform at the high level the VA has experienced to date.” said Joe Morrow, VRM’s Senior Vice President.

This marks the first time that the VA has awarded a 10-year contract for real estate asset services.

“VRM’s innovation in technology, focus on service, program management, training, and utilization of diverse local subcontractors positioned VRM for the award. VRM values the positive business relationship with the VA and acknowledges the hard work and dedication of the VA staff,” according to Cheryl Travis-Johnson, VRM’s Chief Operating Officer.

Over the last five years, VRM Mortgage Services has been the prime contractor for the same services under the current contract award.

“VRM is honored to receive this contract award,” said Keith D. Murray, VRM’s President and CEO. “We look forward to working with our best-in-class vendor network to return funds to the VA that will ultimately increase homeownership for our nation’s veterans.”

Equity Prime Mortgage Partners With Ginnie Mae

Equity Prime Mortgage has announced a partnership with Ginnie Mae. “Our participation with Ginnie Mae will open many doors for many of our new customers,” said Equity Prime Mortgage Chief Operating Officer David Abrahamson. “We understand how important relationships are in business therefore the partnership with Ginnie Mae is a huge step in not only our future, but the industry as a whole.”

Ginnie Mae was established in the United States in 1968 to promote homeownership. As a wholly-owned government corporation within the U.S. Department of Housing & Urban Development (HUD), Ginnie Mae’s mission is to expand

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affordable housing finance in America by linking domestic and global capital to the nation’s housing finance markets, providing market liquidity to federally-sponsored mortgage lending programs.

Equity Prime Mortgage operates 17 office locations across the nation. Equity Prime has been recognized by INC. 5000 as one of the fastest growing companies in America.

Visionet Systems’ CD2UCD Verified by Freddie Mac

Visionet Systems has become a verified technology integration vendor for Freddie Mac’s Loan Closing Advisor platform.

Visionet’s CD2UCD solution was tested to ensure that its interface was developed in accordance with Freddie Mac’s requirements for the Uniform Closing Dataset (UCD).

The UCD is a common collection of data that mortgage lenders will be required to deliver digitally to Freddie Mac and Fannie Mae beginning Sept. 25, 2017. This requirement is part of the Uniform Mortgage Data Program (UMDP).

CD2UCD simplifies the closing process by automatically generating the UCD from existing loan documents supplied by lenders. It addresses many common challenges that arise during UCD preparation, such as embedding a Closing Disclosure image within the UCD XML. It also handles the GSE-required merging of buyer and seller UCDs prior to delivery, caters to different Closing Disclosure and addendum formats and addresses inconsistent terminologies between the Closing Disclosure and MISMO. It offers creation, validation, and delivery of the UCD that is compliant with CFPB Closing Disclosure, and is an early solution that is prepared to deliver seller’s disclosures ahead of the 2017 mandate.

“Our CD2UCD solution facilitates UCD compliance when a lender’s legacy loan origination system can’t perform this task, or where a correspondent lender lacks the closing disclosure data and documents are of poor quality,” said Arshad Masood, CEO of Visionet Systems. “As a verified technology integration vendor, our customers can rest

assured that they’ll be ready to comply with the UCD mandate.”

Maxwell Announces Partnership With LendingQB

Home Point Financial Corporation has announced the

one of the nation’s few nonbank buyers of best efforts and bulk mandatory production, our dedicated sales team supports all delegated sellers. One of our goals is to help grow our clients’ production and assist in their efforts to streamline processes and maximize profitability.”

Landes will lead the Correspondent Lending group; Erik Sorensen will serve as Senior Managing Director of Capital Markets; and John Vandolah will serve as Senior continued on page 90

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Home Point Financial Establishes Institutions Group

structure and leadership team that will provide full-service solutions for our correspondent clients,” said Fregosi. “Home Point is able to provide the right combination of service and products to its delegated clients who want to increase their bulk delivery and best efforts options.

We now have a compelling combination of Sales, Capital Markets and Warehouse Lending that provides Home Point with a significant competitive edge within the industry.”

Steve Landes, Senior Managing Director of the Correspondent Division, said, “As

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Maxwell, a provider of digital mortgage automation software for small and mid-sized lenders, has announced its integration with LendingQB to make it easier for lenders and borrowers to collaborate effortlessly through the mortgage process.

LendingQB’s open-architecture application program interface (API) enables lenders to select the tools that best help their efficiency. LendingQB was cited in the STRATMOR Group’s December 2016 Technology Insights report as achieving an end user effectiveness rating of 93 percent, top marks amongst major LOS providers.

“In this age of platform interoperability, LendingQB gets it—an open origination platform that empowers its users to optimize the experience for speed, security and delight,” said John Paasonen, CEO of Maxwell.

“We’re thrilled to integrate with a likeminded partner as a showcase to Maxwell’s API that gives flexibility back to the customer.”

The integration with LendingQB will enable Maxwell clients to seamlessly sync borrower data with the loan origination system, trigger automated notifications to borrowers and real estate agents, and securely exchange documents and information.

“The ability to provide innovative technology such as an open architecture API offers lenders an added value as their organizations continue to grow and evolve,” said Tim Nguyen, President of LendingQB. “This partnership with Maxwell affirms our commitment to streamlining our clients’ access to products and services that power their business. Innovation is accelerating in this industry and lenders benefit when they can utilize best-of-breed solutions to streamline the mortgage process.”

formation of its new Institutions Group, which will include Correspondent Lending, Capital Markets and Home Point’s wholly-owned warehouse lending subsidiary, NattyMac. Led by Maria Fregosi, Chief Capital Markets Officer, the Institutions Group will be able to efficiently and effectively serve correspondent clients with services and products that capitalize on the financial resources, technology and expertise of Home Point Financial.

“With the introduction of our Institutions Group, we have a

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NCRA Launches “Man on the Street” Credit Education Video Series to Help Increase Financial Literacy

By Terry W. Clemans

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As consumer reporting agencies providing credit reports to mortgage lenders and property managers, NCRA members are in the “B2B” business structure, so these videos are purely educational for consumers, uniquely designed without steering the consumer into some type of product or service to purchase. NCRA’s goal is to provide the average person with an alternative medium to obtain a base of vital credit information that hopefully stimulates them into seeking more knowledge about their credit report and financial habits.

NCRA would like to thank the

Terry W. Clemans is Executive Director of the National Consumer Reporting Association (NCRA). He may be reached by phone at (630) 539-1525 or e-mail TClemans@NCRAInc.org.

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more complex credit issues such as how scores are calculated, how to improve your credit score, and trended credit data, which is now used in mortgage underwriting.

The first seven videos were filmed in Times Square, with the next installment to be released later this summer filmed at The Alamo.

The best questions asked of the NCRA members were then answered by the credit reporting experts in the Mortgage News Network Studio to complete the three to five minute tutorial video.

The NCRA professionals featured have industry knowledge gained from at least 15 to more than 40 years of hands-on work experience in the credit reporting industry.

Each of these members were volunteers who traveled to New York City and San Antonio on their own expenses to provide a different type of educational medium in an attempt to help improve America’s financial literacy.

professionals at the Mortgage News Network who worked with members of the NCRA Education & Compliance Committee tirelessly to produce this video series. The companies who participated in the committee in the creation of this series include: CIC in Lancaster, Calif.; SIR in Springfield, Mass; CIS in Allamuchy, N.J.; Datafacts in Cordova, Tenn.; CreditXpert in Baltimore; Yardi Systems in Santa Barbra, Calif.; Avantus in West Haven, Conn.; NCS in Egg Harbor, N.J.; and Credit Information Systems in Council Bluffs, Iowa.

NCRA’s next three “Man on the Street” credit score tutorial videos, filmed at Alamo Plaza in San Antonio, are set for release later this summer, in conjunction with details on NCRA’s 25th Anniversary Conference to be held in November in Baltimore.

The videos are also available for viewing at: MortgageNewsNetwork.com/NC RA-Man-Street-Education-VideoSeries. Property managers and mortgage lenders who would like to do business with an NCRA member can locate one under the “Find a Member” tab at NCRAInc.org.

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he National Consumer Reporting Association (NCRA) has introduced the “Man on the Street” Credit Education Video Series as part of the celebration of “National Housing Month.”

NCRA unveiled the series at the National Apartment Association (NAA) Education Conference & Expo at the World Congress Center in Atlanta in late June. The videos can be found on NCRA’s Web site, NCRAInc.org, and are available for members of the real estate industry to link to for wider distribution at no charge.

The series was developed by NCRA’s Education & Compliance Committee as a true “Man on the Street” forum. Video production began filming at some of the country’s most iconic destinations, including Times Square in New York City and at The Alamo in San Antonio, Texas. The feature randomly selected volunteers to interact with NCRA member credit experts addressing questions the consumers had about credit reports, credit scores, public records and the financial services industry in general. Each video Q&A is four to five minutes in length and covers an individual topic. The topics begin at the very base level of what is a credit report and credit score, different types of credit reports, how to dispute information on your credit report, and advancing to

Don’t SNOOZE on Your Marketing This Summer!

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ummer is here, and there are particular items to take into consideration when planning your marketing strategy. Before sending out any marketing materials, spend some time thinking about what your prospects are doing. In the summer months, it’s more important than ever to take your prospect’s lifestyle into consideration before putting together your campaign. Consumers with families are more likely to be on vacation during the summer months. Your marketing efforts can be an intricate part of your growth over these months.

To effectively plan your marketing at any time, it’s important to think about your prospects and what they will be doing when they receive your marketing collateral. Whether you market via direct mail, telemarketing or online marketing like SEO, Google AdWords or Internet leads, it’s important to know what the person might be doing when initial contact is made. Are they on vacation, at work or at home? Each of these scenarios will play out differently through the sales process.

Make sure you are spending time thinking through your own demographic research, marketing campaign and sales process.

How do they fit together? Can you use a different sales approach to make the conversation easier with a smoother transition to closing?

Most importantly, what’s going to bring you the highest return-on-investment (ROI) during the summer? People on vacation don’t always leave their homes. For this reason, direct mail marketing is a consistent provider of qualified interested leads all summer long. Response rates have been on the rise all year.

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TagQuest client spotlight Product: Data (7,500 records per quarter) Results: 16 closed loans in the first quarter and 11 applications in processing expected to close Highlights of the campaign that worked well …

“The accuracy of the data and the near exclusive contact with the borrower, as they are not looking into a mortgage product at that moment, allows us to get much softer responses from a borrower than with traditional inquiries. When we reach someone and identify that they need help with payment reduction or rate reduction they usually move quickly through the process.

“Rather than chasing a single application until its eventually disinterested, with this data, if we do not get an immediate response, i.e. credit pull/ docs out, the data is recycled and we approach them a few weeks later. TagQuest has facilitated a much lower cost of acquisition with excellent results to date.”

Highlights of the campaign that would appeal to other mortgage professionals … l TagQuest is very responsive to testing different markets and approaches. l Any breakdown in data accuracy analyzed by TagQuest, data integrity very important to them. l Success out of the gate with a solid telemarketing team.

TagQuest Inc. is a full-service marketing firm specializing in marketing for the mortgage industry. Call (888) 717-8980 or visit www.tagquest.com.

IMAGINE • INNOVATE • SUCCEED SPONSORED EDITORIAL

heard on the street Managing Director of NattyMac. All will report directly to Fregosi. loanDepot Opens New Palm Springs Lending Center

loanDepot has announced the grand opening of its next generation lending center in Palm Springs, Calif.

“We’re excited to open loanDepot’s first next gen lending location in Palm Springs,” said loanDepot Branch Manager Ron Stowers. “While our borrowers and referral partners continue to drive a lot of the online experience loanDepot is developing, they still value the personalized service we deliver when they visit our locations across the country. The Palm Spring community has been just great in welcoming us to the neighborhood, and we’re looking forward to welcoming them to our newest lending location” The loanDepot Palm Spring team of lending professionals includes Jon-Eric Lehman, Eric Wolf, Kenny Jacques and Sheldon Hecht, all who deliver excellent customer service and flexible financing options from loanDepot including home purchase and refinance, personal and home equity loan products.

GSF Mortgage Reintroduces TPO Division

GSF Mortgage Corp. continues to expand GSF Funding, the TPO/Correspondent Lending Division and welcomes David Kirchen as the new director of TPO/Correspondent Lending. He will be responsible for establishing partnerships with banks, credit unions, mortgage bankers and brokers.

Third-Party Origination (TPO) allows GSF’s partners to offer their customers additional mortgage programs and GSF will underwrite and retain servicing on the loan; however, should a customer have additional mortgage needs, GSF will direct them back to the original company.

A Wisconsin native, Kirchen is a veteran in the mortgage industry with almost 30 years of experience. Kirchen had previously been an area sales manager, where his branch was

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number one in terms of loans closed per month.

“Providing an exceptional customer experience is a daily goal,” said Kirchen.

Also joining the TPO Division is Lesa Meulemans, a Wisconsin native and graduate of Alverno College. Meulemans has been in the mortgage business for 35 years, with experience in virtually every aspect of the field including banking, brokering, and wholesale/correspondent lending.

Tim Lowey is joining the TPO Division as well. Lowry is a native of Louisville, Ky. and has been in the mortgage business since 2000, with experience as a loan officer, underwriter, and an account executive, before assuming his new role as GSF’s wholesale account executive.

“I am very pleased to welcome David and his team to GSF Mortgage,” said GSF Mortgage President Chad Jampedro.

“David’s leadership ability and experience is a welcome asset to our company. He has had an instant impact on our TPO offering and we are excited to see his team develop.”

Lending Science DM Acquires Scoring Solutions

Lending Science DM Inc. has announced the acquisition of Scoring Solutions Inc. Scoring Solutions will run as a division of Lending Science DM and retain its offices in Atlanta. Principals Elina Rodriguez and Steve Darsie will continue as leaders of the Scoring Solutions division.

Founded in 1993, Scoring Solutions provides analytics, scoring, and risk management solutions to auto lenders, banks, consumer lenders and business lenders. Score360 is a scoring and attribute engine for rapid implementation and deployment of scorecards, strategies and credit bureau attributes.

Score360 gives businesses realtime decisioning capabilities.

These services are complementary to Lending Science offering of turnkey marketing and risk services, database marketing, and analytics to the mortgage lending, consumer lending, and business lending industries.

“We are thrilled to have Scoring Solutions as part of our growing team,” said Lending

Science DM CEO Tim Olzer.

“Effective risk management, marketing, and analytics are the catalysts that drive profitability and growth for our customers.

Scoring Solutions brings 24 years of experience, a great track record of success, and will allow us to enhance our services to customers. Our customers will be able to implement models faster than ever before and be able to access Scoring Solutions’ extensive library of custom credit bureau attributes, thus, improving marketing performance and ROMI.” “When we looked at growing the company in the future, we wanted to make sure our customers would continue to receive the core values that we find most important—expert consulting guidance, personalized service, strong, responsive support, and high quality results,” said Rodriguez, Principal of Scoring Solutions.

“We found a perfect fit with Lending Science DM and know our customers will continue to receive the same level of service and support. We are excited to bring Lending Science DM products and services to our customers and to offer our best of breed risk analytics to Lending Science DM customers.”

as competitive loan products. I’m confident with our continued dedication to providing personalized, focused service to each and every Prosperity customer, we’ll show our clients in Detroit exactly why we are among the top lenders in the nation.”

ValuAmerica Acquires ValuEscrow

ValuAmerica, a Pittsburgh-based subsidiary of Clayton Holdings

LLC, has acquired ValuEscrow Inc., an independent escrow company located in Santa Ana, Calif. ValuEscrow will continue to operate with its current staff and under its own brand and license.

The terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.

“At ValuAmerica, expanding our operational footprint is integral to achieving our longterm success,” said Shawn Murphy, executive vice president of ValuAmerica. “This transaction will further enhance ValuAmerica’s ability to serve our national clients in the country’s largest real estate market.”

Dart Appraisal Approved as an AMC by Ditech Financial

Dart Appraisal has announced that it has been named an approved Appraisal Management Company (AMC) by Ditech Financial LLC. Dart Appraisal will immediately begin providing residential valuation services to all of Ditech’s mortgage origination channels. The selection of Dart Appraisal was continued on page 92

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Prosperity Home Mortgage Opens Detroit Branch

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Prosperity Home Mortgage LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Long & Foster Companies, has expanded its operations into the Detroit metropolitan area.

“We’re thrilled to have the opportunity to expand our footprint into the Midwest,” said Tim Wilson, Chief Executive Officer of Prosperity Home Mortgage.

“Prosperity continues to be one of the best mortgage companies in the country, and we are looking forward to showcasing the wealth of knowledge and integrity that our team of mortgage professionals brings to each and every transaction—all in support of our mission to deliver to our clients an extraordinary home financing experience.”

Ron Wivagg, National Sales Support Manager for Prosperity, echoed Wilson’s thoughts.

“Prosperity has built a strong reputation for providing the highest quality of service and support to the clients we serve,” Wivagg said.

“We lead the way with cuttingedge tools and technology, as well

l ACES Risk Management (ARMCO), a provider of financial quality control and compliance software ACES Audit Technology, has announced that it has hired Ben Mahan as Chief Technology Officer.

THOMERSON DRAKE

UAMP Expo

By Utah Association of Mortgage Professionals

Thursday, August 31, 2017 8:00 AM – 7:00 PM MDT

Salt Lake Marriott Downtown at City Creek 75 South West Temple I Salt Lake City, UT 84101 Join us for this opportunity to network with the area's top mortgage professionals.

This 1 day event has consistently drawn over 600 attendees!

For information call us at (904) 651-3143 or email us at valsaun@gmail.com

uampexpo.eventbrite.com

BRAWNER

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l Castle & Cooke Mortgage has announced the opening of its newest branch in Escondido, Calif., to be led by industry veteran and San Diego County local Leslie Thomerson, who has 28 years of experience in the mortgage industry. Castle & Cooke Mortgage has also announced the opening of its new Reno, Nev. branch to be led by Jodi Drake, who has 17 years of

DONOVAN

l First Guaranty Mortgage Corporation (FGMC) has announced that mortgage industry veteran Kimberly Donovan has joined the company as Account Executive for the company’s Correspondent Division.

SHOCKLEY

MAHAN

Mortgage Professionals to Watch

experience in the industry and is licensed in both Nevada and California.

Castle & Cooke has announced the opening of its Memphis-area branch in Cordova, Tenn. to be led by Branch Manager John Brawner, who has 24 years of experience in the mortgage industry.

NORMAN

made following a rigorous vetting process of Dart Appraisal’s infrastructure, processes, capabilities and overall stability.

“We are incredibly proud to have been selected as an AMC

by Ditech,” said Michael Dresden, President of Dart Appraisal. “Dart Appraisal has the proven ability to excel in the marketplace, supported by a strong commitment to customer service and the technology to handle the business flow. We are excited about working with Ditech, and look forward to building a long-term partnership.”

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HAWKINS

heard on the street

l Academy Mortgage has announced the promotion and hiring of three new Vice Presidents, as Rob Shockley has accepted the role as Academy’s Senior Vice President of Human Resources; John Norman has been named Vice President of Risk Management; and Abby Hawkins is now Vice President of Learning, Training and Development. l New American Funding has named Joe Smith its new Regional Sales Manager overseeing the Arizona market, responsible for expanding the company’s brand statewide by recruiting new Loan Officers,

ROONEY

l Opes Advisors, a Division of Flagstar Bank, has named Wendy Sisneroz as the new area manager for the region’s four offices in California’s Central Valley.

HARDAWAY

l Draper and Kramer Mortgage has announced the establishment of first physical presence on the West Coast with the opening of a Los Angeles branch.

GOLDBERG

l The National Association of Realtors (NAR) has named Bob Goldberg as its new

Chief Executive Officer. l Franklin American Mortgage Company (FAMC) Technology has announced the formation of an Innovation Team to foster and advance innovation throughout the company.

Sharon Frazier has been named Vice President of the new group that will be charged with turning ideas into products, revenue generators or growth catalysts through appropriate risk-taking and continued on page 98

Why choose MBS Highway?

BARRY HABIB— THE ORIGINATOR OF THE MARKET ADVISORY SERVICE Daily guidance and insights from Mortgage Market expert Barry Habib. He closed over $2 Billion in production as a Loan Originator, called the bottom of the Housing Market and currently provides sales and market training to thousands of Loan Originators across the country.

STATE OF THE ART, USER FRIENDLY WEBSITE We've taken great pride in building a website that uses new technology, and enhances the user experience. No matter where you are on our site, you'll always have market data in sight. Never miss a lock alert with our real time market news and alert system.

EASILY SHAREABLE CONTENT With a touch of a button members are able to share charts showing the latest economic and housing data.

REAL ESTATE DATA & INSIDER CONTENT Show the housing opportunity in your local market to customers and real estate agents. We will provide you with affordability levels, appreciation, resale volume, new construction, and job growth…updated monthly and easily shared. There is also additional content from Art Cashin, Kiplinger letters, and much more.

MOBILE WEB APP Always stay in touch with the market when on the go with our Mobile Web App. It's fast and easy to use. Whether you have an iPhone, Android, Blackberry, Windows Phone, you'll always have access to MBS Highway. No downloads, no annoying updates, just visit m.mbshighway.com in your phone or tablet's browser.

CALCULATORS AND TOOLS Powerful and unique calculators to help you when presenting to customers. Buy vs.

Rent, ARM vs. Fixed, Paying Points, and Amortization calculator are a few examples. You can save and share the results to beat your competition.

What you're getting with your MBS Highway trial l Bond Quotes l Daily Video and Transcript l Interactive Charts l Lock/Float Advice l SMS Updates l Real Time Market News l Cashin's Corner l The Kiplinger Letters l Real Estate Market Data l By The Number$ l MBS TrendTRAKR l Social Share

Try it FREE for 14 days at MBSHighway.com/MNN

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l Homeward Residential Inc., a subsidiary of Ocwen Financial Corporation, has announced that Scott Houp has joined the company as Vice President of Sales for the Western Division. Houp brings to his new position more than 30 years of mortgage banking and residential lending experience, with the last 22 years focused on businessto-business third-party origination (TPO).

l MiMutual Mortgage has

named David Isljamovski Business Development Manager, responsible for branch business development activities nationally for MiMutual Mortgage’s Retail Division.

NationalMortgageProfessional.com

HOUP

l Bay Equity Home Loans has named Mike Rooney as new Area Sales Manager for the company’s Santa Rosa, Calif. branch.

Draper and Kramer’s new Los Angeles branch will be led by Area Manager Timothy Hardaway, a mortgage professional with 14 years of lending experience spanning leadership, management, origination and processing roles.

ISLJAMOVSKI

SISNEROZ

identifying additional branch locations, and growing sales volume. New American has also announced the hiring of Sue Silverman for a new role within the company, working in several key areas, with primary responsibilities centered on broker relations, product development and loan structuring.

Three Misconceptions About Mi That Could Cost You Sales

By Bubba Mills

ust when you think you understand a generation, it up and surprises you. Case in point: Millennials, those born between 1981 and 1997. But before we get to the misconceptions about them, let’s consider why you should care.

First, they’re huge. Millennials now outnumber the Baby Boomer Generation. That makes them the single largest generation–75.4 million strong. Their numbers are simply too big to ignore.

And they’re preparing to buy homes. According to Trulia’s 2017 housing report, 83 percent

J

of Millennials say they plan on buying, with 72 percent looking to buy in 2018. Plus, another report from Nielsen and the Demand Institute says Millennials will spend around $2 trillion on home purchases in the next five years. Today, there are only about 13 million Millennial households in the U.S., but by next year, that number is projected to rise to 22 million.

Now, the misconceptions, and why mortgage professionals need to understand them: l Misconception 1: Millennials only like working with online mortgage options. Not true. In

fact, they want to work with local lenders–in person. Yes, you read that right–in person, not online. Who knew? In a recent study from CentSai, a financial wellness Web site, a full 71 percent of Millennials said that they prefer using a local lender instead of an online option. Specifically, they said they liked the personal touch and handholding, long-standing relationships, local knowledge and reduced hassles. The survey also found that online lending options seem less popular than expected, despite advertising cheaper

overall cost via mobile apps.

Another study from Ernst & Young found Millennials are more collaborative than any other generation. They see working together with others as easier and more fun. Still, 91 percent of Millennials said they would use an online site or mobile app to research neighborhoods and home prices and to identify houses that they might buy. So the takeaway? Continue your online efforts, but emphasize your local knowledge and personal touch, and that you want to work with them as a team to reach their homeownership dreams.

Millennials

l Misconception 2: Millennials only like to communicate via texting. Nope, not the case.

They’re not always about texting. Sure, Millennials love their smartphones as much as anyone, and of course, that includes texting. And yes, they’re pretty well-versed in all forms of digital communication, but in a survey by Bentley University in Massachusetts, more than half of Millennials said they wanted to speak in person when possible. Only 14 percent chose texting as their preferred communication method, and 19 percent chose

e-mail. So it appears all the technology is sometimes overwhelming for Millennials.

The takeaway: Follow their lead on how you communicate with them and never assume it is just texting. l Misconception 3: Millennials tend to prefer glitz and flashiness. Wrong. Jakob Nielsen, a Web usability consultant, has studied Millennial online preferences and found that while they’re aesthetically discerning (yes, just like all of us), the generation typically appreciates streamlined

informative, user-friendly simplicity over the big and the bold. The takeaway: Revisit your Web site and make changes that will make it more practical, simple and easy to use.

This all comes down to the old

saying: Don’t assume … you make you know what out of “you” and “me,” I won’t finish it, but you know how it ends. The bottom line is, you need to take time to learn as much as you can about younger generation and apply what you learn at every turn.

Bubba Mills is Chief Executive Officer and Owner of Corcoran Consulting & Coaching Inc. He may be reached by phone at (800) 957-8353 or visit CorcoranCoaching.com.

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underwriting decision in seconds. Results of the decision are documented in a findings report. This report includes program-specific, conditional underwriting criteria utilized in the data analysis.

Portfolio Underwriter seamlessly integrates with Calyx Point and PointCentral loan origination systems. The connection facilitates bidirectional data flow and provides a single system of record for all loan documentation. Centralization of processes and documents streamlines preparation for audits, board reviews and regulatory submissions.

“Manually underwriting portfolio loans not only exposes lenders to Fair Lending issues, but is also time consuming and costly,” said Ben Wu, Executive Director at LoanScorecard. “By incorporating automated technology like Portfolio Underwriter, portfolio lenders using Point and PointCentral can improve efficiency by

streamlining decisioning for their unique programs and focus on more complex transactions.”

CIS Releases RiskView Disclosing Suppressed Public Records CIS has announced RiskView Liens & Judgments report from LexisNexis is now integrated with CIS credit & verification solutions.

“RiskView Liens & Judgments discloses the civil judgments and tax liens that the national credit bureaus will suppress in July, providing a solution that prevents interruption to our clients’ ability to make confident, informed risk assessment decisions,” said Mike Brown, CIS President and Chief Executive Officer. “CIS clients have the option to include RiskView Liens & Judgments as an automatic addendum with every credit report or request the report

individually on specific applicants.”

RiskView Liens & Judgments is a LexisNexis report that contains the public records that Experian, Equifax & TransUnion will no longer report as requirements under the National Consumer Assistance Plan continue to be implemented.

“The public record suppression is a major change to the details included in consumer credit reports,” said Brown. “This change had the propensity to significantly impact clients’ risk-assessment procedures; however CIS responded with the RiskView Liens & Judgments report, which provides instant access to the same public record information clients have relied on for decades to measure risk and determine ability-to-repay.”

NRMLA and NAIPC Offer Elder Abuse Resources

As part of World Elder Abuse Awareness Day (WEAAD), the

National Reverse Mortgage Lenders Association (NRMLA) and the National Aging in Place Council (NAIPC) have jointly launched new consumer Web pages to help seniors recognize the signs of abuse and report instances of financial fraud and exploitation to the appropriate authorities.

Through their combined audience of more than 36,000 monthly Web site visitors, the organizations hope to provide more seniors with the tools to protect themselves from scams and abuse.

“Elder financial abuse is a growing epidemic in the United States and we have a special responsibility in our industry to help stop its spread,” said NRMLA President and CEO Peter Bell. “By making these resources readily available on our consumer education Web site reversemortgage.org, we are joining the global effort to prevent the abuse, neglect, continued on page 99

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#mortgageCAMP

Summer CAMP 2017 Destination Coronado

Development, Outreach, Enjoyment Grow your Business and Grow Yourself

August 7 - 8, Coronado Island Marriott www.thecampsite.org/SummerCAMP2017

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heard on the street innovative discipline. l Cloudvirga has named Michael Schreck its Chief Executive Officer, succeeding cloudvirga CoFounder Bill Dallas, who will continue as Chairman of cloudvirga’s Board of Directors. l LRES has announced Jill Haro as its Vice President of Corporate Administration. Haro will oversee compliance and

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corporate wide strategic projects. Haro has more than 15 years of experience working within the mortgage services industry in operations, client relations and corporate project management. l GSF Mortgage Corporation has added new branch located in Lakeland, Fla., the GSF Construction Division, to be led by Chad Baker and

his team of Mortgage Loan Originators, Brad Edmonson and Lisa Kimsey-Dunham. GSF has also named Mortgage Loan Originator Ashley Whealton as a new addition to the company’s Jacksonville, Fla. office. l Motto Mortgage, a member of the RE/MAX Holdings Inc. family of brands, has announced that banking and finance industry veteran Lance Allbritton and David Hoggard, Broker/Owner of RE/MAX River & Sea, have

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purchased and opened the first Motto Mortgage franchise in the Pacific Northwest in Astoria, Ore. Guild Mortgage has promoted Gemma Currier to Vice President of National Retail Sales Operations to oversee the company’s sales technology, sales training and development, retail administration and project management. loanDepot has announced the appointments of Eric Gutierrez as Executive Vice President, Marketing and Pat Flanagan as Executive Vice President, Next Generation Lending.

Both Gutierrez and Flanagan will step into newly-created roles as members of loanDepot’s executive team, reporting to CEO Anthony Hsieh.

Premium Title has grown its sales team and announces two new National Sales Executives, Deborah L. Shepherd and Aaron T. Fain. Shepherd and Fain will be focused on delivering title and closing solutions to top- and midtier mortgage, home equity and reverse mortgage lenders.

Roostify has named Sandeep Aji Vice President of Products, responsible for overseeing the continued development of Roostify’s mortgage technology platform–from enabling more API-driven capabilities, to improving user experience for lenders and consumers.

Your turn National Mortgage Professional Magazine invites its readers to submit any information, events, passages, promotions, personal or professional occurrences that seem appropriate and/or other pertinent data to the attention of: Heard on the Street/Mortgage Professionals to Watch column Phone #: (516) 409-5555 E-mail: Newsroom@MortgageNewsNetwork.com

Note: Submissions sent via email are preferred. The deadline for submissions is the 1st of the month prior to the target issue.

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and exploitation of older adults.”

NAIPC Executive Director Marty Bell said, “Our organization is devoted to helping people age with confidence and the resources to stay in their own homes as long as possible. Elder financial abuse, which costs victims so much more than money, strips away their dignity and independence.

We all have a responsibility to recognize the signs of mistreatment and the wherewithal to report it.”

officers have a snapshot of their business allowing them to think about their business broader, focus on the details and spend time thinking of new and innovative ways to grow their business. In addition, Argos provides lead generation that drives prospective clients directly to the loan officers so they can grow their business.

“In our fast-paced and technology driven world, we must equip our team with the

solutions to succeed in identifying and confidently closing loans,” said Doug Casbon, Executive Vice President and National Production Manager for Starkey Mortgage. “The Argos platform is a solution that provides our team with the resources needed today to succeed and sets Starkey up for future growth as the needs of our industry continue to change.”

Your turn National Mortgage Professional Magazine invites you to submit

any information promoting new “niche” loan programs, new products or any other announcement related to the introduction of a new program, to the attention of: New to Market column Phone #: (516) 409-5555 E-mail: Newsroom@MortgageNewsNetwork.com

Note: Submissions sent via email are preferred. The deadline for submissions is the 1st of the month prior to the target issue.

Starkey Mortgage Launches New Management Platform

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Starkey Mortgage has announced the launch of Argos, its proprietary management and marketing platform. Designed to provide Starkey’s team, Argos leverages the best technology and vendors to enable loan officers to build their business through increased efficiencies in a variety of areas, including prospecting, pipeline management, communications and marketing.

“Argos was designed to help loan officers gain more time in each day and to focus on the most important items that allow them to close more loans,” said Jim Anderson, Senior Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer with Starkey Mortgage. “The platform not only supports but enhances key business areas for our loan officers.

We started with CRM as the foundation of Argos since our customers, and our connection with them is the backbone of our sales process. We look forward to continuing to roll out new solutions on the platform in the coming months.”

Powered by the CMPS Platform, the Argos CRM module is a mobileresponsive platform that helps loan officers create and track daily sales activities and measure progress with each relationship. Through easy to access dashboards, loan

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REMN Wholesale 732-738-7100 www.remnwholesale.com Although REMN Wholesale is part of a large corporation, it feels like a “Mom and Pop”-style company. We encourage our team members to grow and we train and promote each individual to their full potential. As a national company, REMN provides many opportunities for employment from coast to coast.

United Wholesale Mortgage 800-981-8898 www.uwm.com/careers Voted the #1 place to work in Metro Detroit, UWM is looking for A players to join our talented team. Our business is driven by our culture, and our people are our greatest asset. If you’re looking for the opportunity of a lifetime, apply to UWM today!

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NATIONAL MORTGAGE PROFESSIONAL MAGAZINE’S

calendar of events

AUGUST 2017 Monday-Tuesday, August 7-8 California Association of Mortgage Professionals Presents Summer CAMP 2017 Coronado Island Marriott 2000 2nd Street • Coronado, Calif.

For more information, call (916) 448-8236 or visit TheCAMPSite.org.

Wednesday-Friday, August 9-11 44th Annual Colorado Mortgage Lenders Association Vail Convention Vail Marriott Mountain Resort 715 West Lionshead Circle Vail, Colo.

For more information, call (303) 7739565 or visit CMLA.com.

Thursday-Friday, August 17-18 Mortgage Star Conference for Women Planet Hollywood Las Vegas Resort & Casino 3667 Las Vegas Boulevard South Las Vegas For more information, call (860) 9223441 or visit MortgageStar.biz.

Wednesday-Thursday, September 13-14 Mortgage Professionals of Iowa 2017 Convention/Education Echo Valley Country Club 3150 Echo Valley Drive Norwalk, Iowa For more information, call (515) 669-5571 or visit Impoi.wildapricot.org.

Thursday-Friday, September 14-15 Mortgage Bankers Association Human Resources Symposium Residence Inn Arlington Capital View 2850 South Potomac Avenue Arlington, Va. For more information, visit MBA.org.

Sunday-Tuesday, September 17-19 Mortgage Bankers Association’s Regulatory Compliance Conference 2017 Grand Hyatt Washington 1000 H Street Washington, D.C. For more information, visit MBA.org.

Thursday, August 31 UAMP Expo 2017 Salt Lake Marriott Downtown at City Creek 75 South West Temple Salt Lake City For more information, call (904) 651-3143 or e-mail valsaun@gmail.com.

Friday, September 22 2017 NW Mortgage Expo & Real Estate Summit MOTIF Seattle Hotel 1415 5th Avenue Seattle For more information, call (206) 484-6442 or visit MyWAMP.org.

Wednesday, September 27 NYAMB’s 29th Annual Convention & Trade Show The Melville Marriott 1350 Walt Whitman Road Melville, N.Y. For more information, call (914) 315-6644 or visit NYAMB.org.

OCTOBER 2017 Monday-Thursday, October 9-12 Northeast Conference of Mortgage Brokers & Professionals 2017 Harrah’s Resort & Convention Center 777 Harrah’s Boulevard Atlantic City, N.J. For more information, call (732) 596-7642 or visit MBANJ.com.

Saturday-Monday, October 14-16 NAMB National 2017 Rio All-Suite Las Vegas Hotel and Casino 3700 West Flamingo Road Las Vegas For more information, visit NAMB.org.

Saturday, October 21 MPowering You: MBA’s Summit For Women in Real Estate Finance Mile High Ballroom Colorado Convention Center 700 14th Street Denver For more information, visit MBA.org.

Sunday-Wednesday, October 22-25 Mortgage Bankers Association 2017 Annual Conference & Trade Show Colorado Convention Center 700 14th Street • Denver For more information, visit MBA.org.

To submit your entry for inclusion in the National Mortgage Professional Calendar of Events, please e-mail the details of your event, along with contact information, to newsroom@mortgagenewsnetwork.com. *Looking for additional exposure at key industry events?

Call 516.409.5555, ext. 4 to discover how to maximize your event coverage.

NOVEMBER 2017 Monday-Wednesday, November 13-15 2017 NRMLA Annual Meeting & Expo The Palace Hotel 2 New Montgomery Street San Francisco, Calif.

For more information, call (202) 939-1783 or visit NRMLAOnline.org.

Monday-Wednesday, November 13-15 Mortgage Bankers Association 2017 Accounting and Financial Management Conference Grand Hyatt San Antonio 600 East Market Street San Antonio, Texas For more information, visit MBA.org.

DECEMBER 2017 Monday-Tuesday, December 4-5 Mortgage Bankers Association Summit On Diversity and Inclusion 2017 Capital Hilton 1001 16th Street NW Washington, D.C. For more information, visit MBA.org.

Tuesday, December 5 2017 California Holiday Networking Party The Atrium Hotel 18700 Macarthur Boulevard Irvine, Calif.

For more information, call (516) 409-5555.

JANUARY 2018 Monday-Thursday, January 22-25 Mortgage Bankers Association Independent Mortgage Bankers Conference 2018 The Ritz Carlton, Amelia Island 4750 Amelia Island Parkway Fernandina Beach, Fla. For more information, visit MBA.org.

FEBRUARY 2018 Tuesday-Friday, February 6-9 Mortgage Bankers Association National Mortgage Servicing Conference & Expo 2018 Gaylord Texan 1501 Gaylord Trail Grapevine, Texas For more information, visit MBA.org.

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Thursday-Friday, August 24-25 LMLA 2017 Education Conference New Orleans Hilton Riverside Hotel 2 Poydras Street • New Orleans For more information, call (225) 590-5722 or visit LMLA.com.

Tuesday, September 19 Colorado Mortgage Summit Denver Marriott Tech Center 4900 South Syracuse Street Denver For more information, c all (860) 719-1991 or visit COMortgageSummit.com.

Sunday-Tuesday, September 24-26 Mortgage Bankers Association 2017 Risk Management, QA & Fraud Prevention Forum Intercontinental Miami 100 Chopin Plaza • Miami For more information, visit MBA.org.

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Friday-Sunday, August 18-20 Originator Connect Planet Hollywood Las Vegas Resort & Casino 3667 Las Vegas Boulevard South Las Vegas For more information, call (860) 922-3441 or visit OriginatorConnect.com.

SEPTEMBER 2017 Wednesday, September 6 Texas Mortgage Roundup–Dallas DoubleTree by Hilton Dallas Near the Galleria 4099 Valley View Lane • Dallas For more information, call (860) 922-3441 or visit TXMortgageRoundup.com.

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A loan to a Church can result in an "open door" opportunity for Residential loans to Church members.

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RMF delivers industry-leading products, top-quality service, and advanced technology platforms to help originators grow their HomeBridge Wholesale iis a national wholesale lender offeering Conventional, business byJumbo, reverse mortgages their product mix.

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REMN Wholesale www.remnwholesale.com 866-933-6342 REMN has FHA, USDA, 203k, VA and Conventional solutions to fit the needs of your customers. But, at REMN, our most valuable product is our people. The REMN Sales and Operations Teams give you - and your loans - the time and attention that you deserve. Even better, at REMN, same-day approvals are guaranteed.* You can rely on us to get the little, yet vital, things taken care of on time.

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Greenbox Loans, Inc 3250 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 1900 Los Angeles, CA, 90010 (800) 600-9198 www.greenboxloans.com Greenbox Loans, Inc. is a proven leader in the Non-QM & Non-Prime lending environment offering bank statement programs, foreign national lending solutions, along with programs allowing for recent short sale, foreclosure, bankruptcy for borrowers as low as 500 Fico Score. Greenbox Loans, Inc. is a national lender offering its programs through a multiple of channels including Retail, Wholesale, and Investor Specialty division.

WHOLESALE LENDERS

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PRIVATE FINANCING

Now Hiring Wholesale Sales Managers/Account Executives Nationwide Please send resumes to Marketing@HomeBrridge.com

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TagQuest is a full service marketing firm created specifically for the ever changing mortgage business. We have tested and proven campaigns for FHA -VA - HARP - CONVENTIONAL loan types.

TagQuest knows what it takes to generate quality leads whether through direct mail marketing, telemarketing, internet leads, data lists, tracking systems, or any combination thereof. TagQuest will brand your company, prepare targeted marketing campaigns that generate interest in your company, and most importantly, show you how to turn sales leads into repeat customers.

HomeBridge Wholesale iis a national wholesale lender offeering Conventional, Government, Jumbo, Renovation We G J b and dR i Loans.

L W are comm mitted to providing the highest value to our clients through competitive pricin ng, unique product offerings, superior customer service, and state-of-the-art technology.

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Š Angel Oak Mortgage Solutions LLC NMLS #1160240, Corporate office, 980 Hammond Drive, Suite 850, Atlanta, GA, 30328. This communication is sent only by Angel Oak Mortgage Solutions LLC and is not intended to imply that any of our loan products will be offered by or in conjunction with HUD, FHA, VA, the U.S. government or any federal , state or local governmental body. This is a business-to-business communication n and is intended for licensed mortgage professionals only and is not intended to be distributed to the consumer or the general public. Angel Oak Mortgage Solutions LLC is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does d not discriminate against individuals on the basis of race, gender, color, religion, national origin, age, disability, veteran status or other classifications protected by law. 1-11-17 HPG.